Every Time I Make a Girl Cry
by SoldierG65434-2
Summary: Yoruichi has never been that in touch with her feelings, which is unfortunate for Sui-Feng.
1. Chapter 1

**DISCLAIMER:** The rights to all copyrighted material mention henceforth in this document are owned by their respective owners.

In my last chapter of "The Good Times are Killing Me," I mentioned that you should all thank PolarisAmane for that fics continued existence. I was half joking then, but I can say with all seriousness that this fic would not exist without a conversation I had with her. Turns out, we have a similar sense of humor.

I would also like to thank PolarisAmane for acting as my beta-reader for this fic. I haven't used one in a while, and I'm starting to think I should.

Normally, at the beginning of a new multi-chapter fic, I like to take some time to explain my objective for the fic, but this will be much more fun (for me) if you all go in blind.

The title of this fic comes from the Band Marino song "Every Time I Make a Girl Cry I Know I've Done My Job." It'a bit of a sarcastic title.

I've added a new poll to my profile so you all can voice your opinion on what I update next.

Fuck you FF .net for stealing my asterisks!

* * *

Yoruichi's casual stroll was a stark contrast to the frantic running of the other black-clad Shinigami. All around her, men and women alike could be seen scurrying to and fro, carrying documents and supplies to their destinations. Of course, she hadn't expected things to be exactly calm today.

Today was the day before the battle with Aizen in the Fake Karakura.

The one thing that was rather surprising, or at least it should have been, was the conspicuous absence of white among the frantic Shinigami. Yamamoto had given all the Captains, Lieutenants, and Officers participation in the upcoming battle the day off to prepare.

That was why Yoruichi was in the Seireitei. Even though she had all but severed any amicable channels of communication with the Gotei 13, only interacting with them as much as was necessary, there were still those within her ranks that she considered friends. There were still those that she wanted to say goodbye to.

Yoruichi looked around to get her bearings. She couldn't remember the last time she used the Gotei 13's Senkaimon, and the experience was a tad disorientating.

While it papered that there was no real rhyme or reason the layout of the Seireitei and that the divisions were scattered about randomly in spite of their numerical monikers, the truth was that those division with connections to Nobles, and by extension money, had the first choice on land during the massive complex's construction.

Taking to the rooftops to avoid the scuttling Shinigami, which looked remarkable like black ants from her great heights, Yoruichi headed for the closest Division that housed one of her few friends, which happened to be the Thirteenth.

* * *

Wiping the perspiration from his brow, Jushiro Ukitake lowered his pruning shears and admired his handy-work.

His prized bonsai tree, which he had planted when he became a Captain and now stood almost as tall as him, now had a perfectly sculpted dome of leaves to shade him from the harsh afternoon sun with.

Smiling with accomplishment, Ukitake turned his shears to the hedges that surrounded his manicured garden.

"Managed to make it through the day with your shirt on, I see." Ukitake turned around to see Yoruichi climbing over the high wall of his garden. The last time Yoruichi paid a visit to Ukitake, she had found him shirtless, pinned to the large oak tree that stood in the center of half-acre that he modestly referred to as his garden.

"Yoruichi-san! What a pleasant surprise!" Ukitake waved to the brown-skinned woman with a smile, breathing a sigh of relief as she dismounted the wall and avoided landing on any flowers. Ukitake had always been one of the few people that respected her request to not be addressed with a royal honorific, even before she forfeited her titles.

"Gotta say, this is not what I expected to find you doing on the eve of the big, climatic battle." Yoruichi replied.

"What did you expect?" Ukitake asked as he walked over to a small tea table that sat in the shade. He always had a fresh pot of tea brewed and two cups set out, just in case he had a visitor.

"I don't know, maybe you swinging the old Zanpakutou around a bit to loosen up the elbows." Yoruichi mimicked the motion of swinging a sword as she sat down.

"A couple hours of training at this point wouldn't make a bit of difference," Ukitake responded as he poured Yoruichi a cup of tea. "All it would accomplish would be to make me more tired for tomorrow. Besides I've always found tending to my garden relaxing. It helps me clear my mind and concentrate." Ukitake sipped at his tea. "Speaking of tomorrow, what brings you here? Sharing a cup of tea with an invalid isn't what I expected the great Shunshin Yoruichi to do the day before the big, climatic battle."

"I guess…I just wanted to…" Yoruichi hesitated, frowning. She stalled by sipping her tea.

"It's okay to say goodbye, Yoruichi." Ukitake smiled gently.

"Yeah," Yoruichi sighed. A small flower caught her eye. It was blue with five long petals that spiralled out from the center in a similar manner to that of a fan. "Hey! What's this called?" Yoruichi asked, quickly changing the subject.

"Oh that?" Ukitake perked up. He loved sharing his botanical knowledge with others. "That's a blurse kang…"

* * *

Unohana sat quietly in her quarters. In spite of the hectic bustle outside in the Fourth Division Infirmary as medics scrambled to ready themselves for the imminent influx of serious injuries, the only sound that could be heard within Unohana's room was the soft rustling of leaves in the wind.

Unohana sat on the floor with a small canvas square in front of her. Next the canvas was an assortment of paints and brushes. Unohana stared out pensively though her open balcony and to the lush forest that say beyond.

Unohana had painted this landscape over a thousand times, yet no two were the same. If one lined up all the paintings side by side, the effect would be very similar to that of time-lapsed photography. Bushes and trees were millimetres taller, then centimetres. Clouds were never in the same place and the sun sank and rose. A tree may be covered in spring blooms and barren with bitter winter. Indeed, one vista gave a lifetime of portraits.

The silent tranquillity of her surroundings was so complete that Unohana was actually able to hear Yoruichi drop down from the roof and onto the balcony.

"It's beautiful, as always." Yoruichi commented as she looked at the painting. By the looks of things, it was almost finished.

"Thank you, Yoruichi-dono." Unohana smiled. Unlike others, Unohana's use of a honorific was more out of respect for the past than any imaginary rank. 'But I'm afraid that my greens are a little bit off. I wasn't able to pick the right herb and it shows." Unohana mixed her own paints and made her own brushes.

"Nonsense," Yoruichi waved away the self-criticism. "No one can tell the difference. Besides, it's not like you ever display any of these."

"Perhaps one day I will finally paint something I am proud enough to let the masses see." Unohana dipped her brush in a small cup of murky water. "Now, what can I do for you? Is Urahara-san in need of emergency supplies?"

"No," Yoruichi fidgeted slightly. "I was…actually wondering if you had one last proverb for me." Whenever Yoruichi was feeling unsure, scared, or just bored, she used to always go to Unohana. She was a very well read woman who had an almost encyclopaedic knowledge of proverbs, among other things. Some of them came from the wise men of Rukongai, while others came from the sometimes wiser men of the Mortal Realms.

"Last?" Unohana asked, her clinical and motherly mind making note of Yoruichi's word choice. "Hmmm," She pondered thoughtfully for a moment.

"There was a Greek historian by the name of Thucydides. I believe his words are very fitting for times such as theses." Unohana stirred the murky water with her brush gently, removing the paint from the soft bristles. "The bravest of men are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike, and yet notwithstanding go out to meet it."

"Thanks," Yoruichi smiled weakly and disappeared.

Unphased by the sudden departure, Unohana removed the brush from the water and dipped it into a deep shade of brown that matched the hue of the tree trunks perfectly.

* * *

Yoruichi slid the back shoji to Kyoraku's quarters to the side and stepped within, kicking the empty bottles of sake out of her path.

Kyoraku's quarters were customarily dingy and disorderly. Neglected paperwork was strewn about the room haphazardly and almost all the exposed wood had water rings from sake cups.

Unlike Ukitake, Yoruichi found Shunsui Kyoraku just where she expected; lounging on his bed with his straw had drawn up over his eyes.

"Ah," Kyoraku smiled as he lifted his hat to see his visitor. "There's one woman I never expected to see using the back door."

"It's the only way to avoid that hen of a Lieutenant you have." Yoruichi replied.

Kyoraku's back door was somewhat infamous among the women of the Seireitei. He always kept it unlocked, should any of his lady callers feel the need to slip in or out inconspicuously. Yoruichi had never had the dubious honor of using the "the back door" until now, due to her inborn preference to the fairer sex, but she had heard plenty of rumours about the women who had. The ones about his former Lieutenant, Lisa Yadomura, had always bothered her. Yoruichi had something of an eye for Lisa back in the day, but then again it was hard not to when she spent most of her time running around in a mini-skirt.

"Nanao-chan can be a little overbearing," Kyoraku sighed as he sat up, "But her hearts in the right place, and that's what counts."

"Maybe," Yoruichi smiled, remembering a time when she defended Sui-Feng's spying to Urahara with a similar phrase.

"Since you're here," Kyoraku grabbed a random, nearby cup and poured it full of sake, "Can I offer you a drink?"

"Sure, that sounds nice." Yoruichi cleared a space for her to take a seat and took the cup.

"So, what will your pretty face be doing while this handsome devil is getting all bloodied up?" Kyoraku asked after gulping down his sake. He quickly refilled his cup.

"I'll be watching over the real Karakura, making sure that hollows don't devour the helpless townsfolk." Yoruichi replied after a sip.

"So noble!" Kyoraku exclaimed. "It breaks my heart that we we're destined to be separated by cruel fate!"

"You always said that my love of women gave us common ground." Yoruichi replied playfully.

"It does, but that doesn't mean that we can't have more common ground." Kyoraku quickly refilled Yoruichi's cup.

"Sorry but," Yoruichi pointed down between her legs, "No boys allowed." Both of them had a good laughed.

Yoruichi always liked talking to Kyoraku. He was so much more laid back than the other captains. She could casually reference her genitalia without him so much as batting an eye.

"So, how do you feel about tomorrow?" Yoruichi asked after a brief silence.

"Aizen is a dangerous man, but with Yama-jii with us, I'm not too worried." Kyoraku smiled nostalgically, remembering how proud Yamamoto was on his graduation day.

The two continued to talk and eventually Yoruichi was on her fifth cup of sake.

"It was fun talking to you again." Yoruichi got up. "But I have to get going."

"I see," Kyoraku sighed. "What do you say we hit the sheets one last time before you go?" Yoruichi flinched slightly at the word "last." "Just for old times' sake."

"There never were any old times." Yoruichi replied flatly.

"Drats! I was hoping the sake would help you forget that." Kyoraku snapped his fingers.

"I may be a light weight," Yoruichi admitted, "But this sake is basically water."

"I know." Kyoraku lamented as he sloshed the liquid in his cup. "Nanao won't let me have the good stuff."

* * *

It always amused Yoruichi that Yamamoto's office was so quaint and simple, especially when compared to the grand and imposing entrance to the First Division.

Yoruichi never really considered Yamamoto a friend. He was simply one of her superiors. Any affection she had for the old man quickly dissipated after he and the Central 46 branded her and Urahara traitors.

The only reason she was standing before the Captain-Commander was because he had requested her presence after learning that she would be within the Seireitei.

"I am pleased that you decided to honor my request for your presence." Yamamoto greeted Yoruichi gruffly from behind his desk. Given that Yoruichi was no longer a member of the Gotei 13, she was under no obligation to obey his orders.

"Well, you did let me use your Senkaimon…" Yoruichi relied dismissively.

"I wanted to thank you for all your hard work and cooperation in the preparations for the battle against Aizen and his forces." Yamamoto leaned forward. "Without you gathering intelligence and delaying the Espada on the few occasions that you engaged them, we would not be on such firm footing."

"Kiuske Urahara conducted forbidden experiments and created the device that has lead the world to the brink of destruction, and while he has aided in the creation of tomorrows battle field, he has yet to show proper remorse for his grave transgressions." Yamamoto met Yoruichi's eyes. "You aided in his criminal actions by neglecting your duties and proper protocol and sheltered him, Tessai Tsukabishi, and those now know and the Vizards from the law. However, you have shown remorse, or at least attempted to make amends for your crimes though your actions in the war effort." Yamamoto stood up.

"That is why I am willing to drop the charges against you and offer you one of the currently vacant Captaincies." Yamamoto concluded.

Yoruichi was taken aback for a moment. She hadn't expected such a gesture from Yamamoto. However, as his words sank in, she quickly regained her footing.

"Thanks, but no thanks." Yoruichi crossed her arms. "I'm not too keen on running back into the arms of people who until very recently wanted me dead."

"I see that you still do not consider us friends." Yamamoto replied sadly.

"I don't consider people who turn on those who tell the truth friends." Yoruichi replied sternly, referring to Urahara's testimony at his trial.

"If you still are wary of us, then why have you been so cooperative?" Yamamoto asked.

"The enemy of my enemy is my friend." Yoruichi shrugged. "You want Aizen dead as much as I do." Yoruichi thought for a moment. "I think the real question is why have you relied on me and Urahara so much when you still clearly consider us criminal scum?"

"It is as you said." Yamamoto replied with a hint of a chuckle. "The enemy of my enemy is my friend."

* * *

Seeing her old friends filled Yoruichi with a nostalgic pang. She missed them and wished that she could spend more time with them. However, Yoruichi felt compelled to spend the rest of the day with the one person that she had seen the most since her return and, oddly enough, still missed the most.

Yoruichi found Sui-Feng at the Onmitsukido parade ground. Assembled in front of her were the seated officers of the Seireitei's police force. It seemed that Sui-Feng was not taking the day off like the others, as she was pacing up and down as she issued orders to the people who would be, for all intensive purposes, controlling the Seireitei in her absence.

"That is all, you are dismissed." Sui-Feng said to her officers with a surprising lack of vigor.

"And here I accepted to find you reading or playing the violin." Yoruichi smirked happily as she approached Sui-Feng.

"Yoruichi-sama!" Sui-Feng perked up at the sound of Yoruichi's voice. "I didn't expect to see you today."

"Are you kidding?" Yoruichi asked with exaggerated shock. "Why wouldn't I come to see you? Especially since tomorrow is…" Yoruichi's voice trailed off as Sui-Feng's expression darkened. "Come on, lets' go get some dinner. I'm starving." Sui-Feng nodded and followed Yoruichi.

Even though Sui-Feng was the head of both the Second Division and the Onmitsukido, she maintained her permanent residence in the Second Division Barracks. They were smaller and more practical, especially when compared to the lavish furnishings of the quarters of the head of the Onmitsukido.

Once Yoruichi and Sui-Feng were inside Sui-Feng's quarters, Sui-Feng prepared them a light meal. Yoruichi accepted her plate hungrily and started to dig in, mostly because eating prevented her from talking.

Sui-Feng was not so hungry. She picked at her rice but ate very little of it. Yoruichi watched Sui-Feng. While her own smile hid the tumult inside her, Sui-Feng was not so guarded. Her eyes and face were just too expressive for her own good. Yoruichi could read her like an open book, and she knew they were thinking about the same thing.

Sui-Feng was not a soldier, she was an assassin. She was not meant for open combat on the battlefield. She was meant to kill the general before the battle even took place.

Sui-Feng was also the head of the intelligence gathering arm of the Gotie 13. She knew just as much as Yamamoto did about the impending battle. However, unlike Yamamoto, she was willing to admit the one fact that Yamamoto was adamantly refusing.

The Gotie 13 wasn't marching to war, it was marching to a slaughter.

All warfare is based upon deception. One never engages their enemy on even ground, yet that was exactly what The Gotie 13 was doing. What was worse was that their enemy could control their very senses. How was someone supposed to fight effectively when everything they touch, taste, smell, hear, and see could very well just be an illusion?

It infuriated Sui-Feng that Yamamoto refused to listen to reason. Why didn't he just send her to assassinate Aizen when they had the chance? Then all of this nonsense could have been avoided. But Yamamoto seemed more concerned with dying honorably than living sensibly.

Yet she was going to be a sacrificial lamb for Ichigo Kurosaki, all because of Yamamoto's juvenile views of death and glory.

Yoruichi and Sui-Feng finished their meal in relative silence. Once they were finished, Sui-Feng cleared the dishes.

"It's getting late, and there is much to prepare for," Sui-Feng said sadly. "I will escort you to the Senkaimon." Yoruichi nodded and followed Sui-Feng.

The trip to the Senkaimon was equally somber. Both women were having a difficult time coming to terms with the fact that this was very likely the last time they were going to see each other.

"Here we are," Sui-Feng almost whispered once they reached the gat to the other world. "Good bye, Yoruichi-sama."

"Good bye, Sui-Feng." Yoruichi did her best to say the words as casually as possible, but she couldn't stop a hint of finality from seeping into her voice.

Sui-Feng started to leave, her steps slow and her head low. Then, she stopped and turned around suddenly.

"Yoruichi-sama!" Sui-Feng called out as if she were afraid that Yoruichi would suddenly leave. Her face was very red. "I…I love you!"

Yoruichi stood there, rooted in place by shock. Then she crossed her arms, smiled her debonaire grin.

"I know you do." Yoruichi's voice dripped with casual dismissiveness.

It was the truth. Yoruichi did know. Everybody knew. How couldn't they?

What most people didn't know was that Yoruichi reciprocated. She was ready to call what she felt love, that she was drawn to Sui-Feng on a level deeper than friendship.

That's why she abided by the woman's affection without objecting to it. In all honesty, Yoruichi fully expected for them to end up together one day; for the walls between them to come tumbling down in a passionate fury.

Yoruichi wasn't one for emotional displays, and she doubted that Sui-Feng would ever muster up the courage to express herself, so she contented herself with teasing and the brief touches in the hopes that one day her quiet patience would pay off.

But Sui-Feng had found the courage.

Emotions were human. Everyone had them. Emotions such as compassion and love were what separated them from the Hollows that they were sworn to destroy.

Yet, when you're in the seat of power, and especially when you're the first woman to hold that seat, you have to keep your emotions guarded.

The Shihoin House was a warrior clan and a political force. And signs of weakness from its leader were unacceptable. Yoruichi could still clearly remember the hours she had spent tied to a post with her sensei beating and whipping her. The beatings would stop when she stopped crying.

The scars all over her back had long since faded, but the effects of the conditioning remained. Yoruichi had lost touch with her emotions, or at least she had lost the ability to properly express them. Over the years, she regained some ability of expression in the form of teasing and flirtation.

Even though she was centuries old, the way she acted towards the people she was attracted to resembled the elementary school yard crushes of mortals. She would tease them, taunt them, and in some cases even bully them. She bullied Sui-Feng, to a degree. It was only little things, such as stealing her food during a meal, but it still showed a level of emotional immaturity that was the result of a childhood of being groomed for power and greatness.

That's why, when faced with a display of such raw emotion as Sui-Feng's confession, Yoruichi didn't know how to react, or even feel.

The first thing Yoruichi felt was jealousy. She knew that Sui-Feng's upbringing had been just as harsh, if not harsher, than her own, yet Sui-Feng could still express her feelings.

The second feeling was slight agitation over Sui-Feng upsetting the natural order of things. Pretty much everyone considered them a de facto couple; there was no need to say it out loud.

The third feeling was elation. There had always been a sneaking suspicion in the back of Yoruichi's mind that Sui-Feng didn't have romantic feelings for her; that it was all just hero worship. She was relieved to find out that her suspicions were false.

But still, all she did was shrug as if Sui-Feng had said something totally mundane. That's all Yoruichi could do. Telling Sui-Feng that she knew was her own confession of sorts. If Yoruichi knew this whole time but never objected to her presence, then she must obviously feel similarly, right?

"What?…You…know?" Sui-Feng's face contorted in a mixture of anger and sadness. She obviously wasn't following Yoruichi's thought process.

Yoruichi regretted the words as soon as they left her mouth. Yoruichi opened her mouth to say something, anything, but before any sound left her mouth, Sui-Feng was gone.


	2. Chapter 2

**DISCLAIMER:** The rights to all copyrighted material mention henceforth in this document are owned by their respective owners.

I've added a new poll to my profile so you all can voice your opinion on what I update next.

This is when things get fun...for me.

* * *

Having a life that spans over thousands of years can really skew one's perception of the flow of time.

To one whose life extends into millennia, two years is a mere rain drop in a lake. It was the equivalent of a few hours to a mortal.

Yet a year still consisted of three-hundred and sixty-five days, and each day was comprised of twenty-four hours, each of which was filled with sixty minutes. Even to someone who lives through the rise and fall of Kingdoms, this is still a lot of time for things to happen.

If felt like only yesterday, but it had, in fact, been two full years since the last time since Yoruichi set foot inside the Seireitei.

Yoruichi looked around at the place she once called home; it was astonishing how little things had changed, considering how much strife and conflict had taken place.

Yoruichi spent almost the entirety of what was commonly known as the Winter War watching over the real Karakura while the Gotie 13 and Vizards battled Aizen and his Espada in an exact replica that Urahara and Mayuri created. It wasn't a glamorous job, but someone had to make sure the townsfolk weren't eaten by hollows in their sleep.

After that, Yoruichi had to watch over Karakura yet again, only this time in its natural location. The town was almost devoid of Shinigami, as the Gotei 13 had retreated to lick their wounds.

All that took about six months. The rest of the time Yoruichi spent stalling.

She knew that she needed to go talk to Sui-Feng. She even wanted to see her again. But she couldn't figure out how she was supposed to face her after what she did. To just dismiss her like that…

"Shihoin-dono!" The Guards of the Second Division Barracks saluted Yoruichi as she approached.

"At ease." Yoruichi replied with a gentle wave. Without prompting, the guards opened the gate and allowed her passage.

_That's a good sign_, Yoruichi thought as she passed through the gate. Normally, those wishing to enter the Second Division Compound needed an appointment or an order form the Captain-Commander. The fact that Yoruichi required neither meant that Sui-Feng hadn't rescinded her order to allow Yoruichi unfettered passage. It could be merely a clerical error, but Yoruichi liked to think that it meant that she was still welcome.

Yoruichi didn't like to walk, if she could help it. When shunpo was second nature to you, walk seemed so sluggish and wasteful. However, she was in no rush to hasten her reunion with Sui-Feng. She still wasn't sure what she was going to say, so the more time before she saw her again, the better.

Eventually, Yoruichi inevitably reached Sui-Feng's quarters. Inhaling deeply, Yoruichi opened the shoji. She never knocked. The head of the Shihoin house didn't need to knock. Especially not for Sui-Feng.

Yoruichi expected to see Sui-Feng hunched behind her desk buried in paper work, but what she found instead was a stark room with only a desk by a window. The precious few personal affectations that normally adorned the walls were nowhere to be seen.

Frowning, Yoruichi entered the room and looked around. There were no signs of life in the apartment and even Sui-Feng's meticulously maintained bedroom was empty. There was only a simple sleeping mat, and it had a layer of dust on it.

A little disturbed, Yoruichi exited the quarters and looked around, making sure she hadn't gotten lost or turned around on her journey. By chance, a member of the Second Division passed by her.

"Hey you!" Yoruichi called out to the boy. He had a slow gait and a rather slouched posture.

"Yes, Shihoin-dono!" The boy saluted.

"This is Sui-Feng's room, correct?" Yoruichi inquired authoritatively.

"Yes, in a way." The soldier replied hesitantly.

"Explain what you mean by in a way." Yoruichi crossed her arms.

"This is still Sui-Feng-taicho's quarters, but she moved her main residency to the Onmitsukido Barracks. She still uses her quarters here as an office, on occasion."

"Thank you." Yoruichi released the boy.

_That's odd_, Yoruichi contemplated. _She said she didn't like the quarters of the Commander-in-Chief of the Onmitsukido. Too much space_. The quarters for the head of the Onmitsukido consisted of a two bedroom apartment, compared to the single bedroom of the Captain of the second Division.

Shrugging, Yoruichi turned on her heels. The Onmitsukido barracks were on the complete other side of the Serieitei. It would be another long walk, but it gave Yoruichi more time to get her thoughts in order.

* * *

Sui-Feng's muscles ached as she trudged through the Onmitsukido barracks. She hated the fact that she had to move her quarters to such a remote part of the Seireitei, but the extra space was necessary.

Since Sui-Feng lost her arm battling Barragan, she had spent almost all of her time recalibrating her fighting style. The loss of so much weight completely altered her center of gravity, so her stances and attacks had to be adjusted accordingly.

She was also engaging in a fair bit of strength training. Normally, Sui-Feng did not normally spend time simply increasing her physical strength. Proper technique and the expert manipulation of her reiatsu can more than make up for her small frame. However, the loss of her arm meant that she had lost a quarter of her strength, so she needed to compensate.

All this extra training wouldn't be a bad thing if it wasn't for the fact that the Onmitsukido training grounds were woefully inadequate.

The Onmitsukido is not part of the Gotei 13 and is privately funded by the nobles who had members and vested interests in it, and as such, the use of the funds was very corrupt. Most of the money that the Onmitsukido receives goes to furnishing the quarters of the notable members, rather than training and equipment.

Luckily, Yoruichi Shihoin had the sense to partially integrate the Second Division and Onmitsukido, giving the paramilitary organization accesses to better training facilities.

Unfortunately, the integration came very late. Even though the Seireitei was a massive military compound that was the size of a small nation state, by the time Yoruichi took up command of the Onmitsukido, space within its walls were at a premium. The current Onmitsukido barracks sat on the opposite end of the Seireitei that the Second Division barracks were. It was a minor inconvenience.

By the time Sui-Feng finally reached her quarters, the sun was already beginning to set. Her lips curled up into a faint smile as she stood outside her door. She could already smell food cooking.

Sui-Feng slide the shoji to the side and stepped within. Delicately, she slipped off her shoes and placed them in their usual spot next to the door and a pair of waraji.

Deftly, Sui-Feng untied the yellow sash around her waist and removed her haori. The stump that was once her left arm was wrapped in clean white bandages, even though it had long since healed. People seemed to stare less if it had bandages on it, and it annoyed her when people stared.

Sui-Feng's socked feet made no noise as she made her way towards the kitchen area. The wooden floors were cold against her thinly veiled feet. Sui-Feng contemplated whether there was enough money available to heat the Onmitsukido's floors as well.

Sui-Feng rounded the corner to the kitchen. Standing behind the stove, stirring the contents of a sizzling pan, was a woman that was about a half inch taller than Sui-Feng with short, bobbed, brown hair. She was wearing the standard Shingami uniform and was of a shapelier build than most other Shinigami. Her figure was softer and more rounded. Her body simply hadn't been hardened by rigorous training like Sui-Feng's had. She looked more like a woman than a soldier.

Her face was ordinary, but not unattractive with large green eyes. Her lips were a bit thin, though that may be a byproduct of the near perpetual smile on her face as were the dimples in her cheeks.

"Hello, Rei." Sui-Feng said a bit tiredly.

"Oh! You're back!" Rei jumped in surprise and then turned to Sui-Feng with a smile. "I didn't have time to run to the market like you asked, there was another training accident in the Eleventh and we were swamped with injured recruits, so it's just a simple stir fry tonight."

"That's fine." Sui-Feng replied. Turning, Sui-Feng walked over to her desk and began to sift through the papers there. As was customary, the forms had already been organized with the most urgent on top and the least urgent on the bottom. Sui-Feng picked up a pen and began to fill out the ones necessary for tomorrow while Rei finished her cooking.

"It's ready!" Rei called out from the kitchen. Sui-Feng placed her signature of one last form before standing. Sui-Feng walked to the dining area and knelt down in front of her usual spot on the low dining table. Rei sat across from her.

Without reservation, Sui-Feng picked up her chopsticks and began to eat. On her plate was a pile of rice and cooked vegetables, all covered in a sauce of Rei's invention.

"It's good," Sui-Feng said after a few bites.

"Thanks," Rei smiled warmly. Sui-Feng gave out complements sparingly, so she made sure to savor them.

"You said there was an accident in the Eleventh?" Sui-Feng asked.

"Yeah," Rei replied. "A few of the more senior members got a little rough with the new recruits and landed several of them in the hospital with some pretty serious injuries." Rei's eyes saddened. "Someone needs to reign in that monster of a Captain. He has no regard for the value of a life!"

"Membership to the Eleventh is strictly voluntary." Sui-Feng replied calmly. "They knew what they were getting themselves into. And if they didn't, then that's their fault for not doing the proper research."

"I guess," Rei relented and fell silent. She decided to study the face of the petite woman in front of her instead.

Sui-Feng was a dignified woman. Her presence exuded a relaxed confidence. Her shoulders were always square but never tense and her chin was always held high, daring anyone to meet her gaze.

Tonight, however, Sui-Feng was uncharacteristically sullen. Her shoulders were slouched and tense and her head and eyes were pointed towards the floor. It was very troubling to Rei.

"Uhh…is something the matter?" Rei asked cautiously.

"No, I'm fine." Sui-Feng lied, shaking her head. The truth was that there was something that was bothering her deeply.

While Sui-Feng had been training, she had felt a sudden flash of reiatsu. The Seireitei was a busy place with all types of training from Shikai to Bankai taking place. Reiatsu flares weren't by any means uncommon. However, this was instantly recognizable to Sui-Feng.

_She_ was here.

Normally, the thought of seeing Yoruichi again would turn the normally stoic Sui-Feng into nearly a blushing school girl. That was before her second display of emotional weakness in front of the woman.

Sui-Feng didn't know what she expected to happen after she had carelessly blurted out her undying love for the brown-skinned woman, but she hadn't expected what happened. She anticipated Yoruichi getting angry, or disgusted, or even, in her wildest fantasies, her accepting and returning the love that was offered to her.

She hadn't expected Yoruichi to just shrug off the declaration as if it was nothing important. Sui-Feng didn't know why she was surprised, though. When she broke down in tears in front of Yoruichi, she outright abstained from answering her desperate question. At least she got a response this time.

The fact that Sui-Feng had sensed Yoruichi's presence wasn't what was bothering her, however. It was the fact that she had sensed it hours ago.

Yoruichi wasn't one to waste time. Shunpo was her specialty, and she used it to travel almost everywhere. The fact that Sui-Feng hadn't seen her yet must mean that she had no business with her.

Normally, Yoruichi didn't need and official reason to see her. She would pop in unannounced at nearly any hour to "check up" on Sui-Feng. But the black-haired woman hadn't seen any sign of her all day.

_I guess I finally managed to destroy what little friendship we had in the first place._ Sui-Feng thought to herself sadly, unaware of Rei's attentive gaze. _I can't blame her for avoiding me. If I knew someone loved me that I didn't feel at least similarly towards, I would only interact with them as much as necessary. _

Sui-Feng finished up her plate and rose from the table. Rei collected the dishes and quickly washed them in the sink, humming softly to herself.

* * *

"Shihoin-dono!" Yoruichi rolled her eyes as another pair of guards saluted her. Yoruichi waved them off and passed through the door that they were guarding.

The quarters of the Commander-in-Chief of the Onmitsukido sat at the end of a long, narrow hallway in the farthest corner of the organizations barracks. Yoruichi walked slowly down the familiar hall. The walls had long since been stripped of the Shihoin House's regal trappings and were now bare.

Yoruichi made it about halfway down the hallway when a near irresistible urge to turn around struck her.

What was she doing here? What did she expect to accomplish? Did she truly think that an apology would make up for what she did? Did she expect to somehow find the courage to tell Sui-Feng how she felt?

In all honesty, Yoruichi was beginning to think that talking to Sui-Feng was only going to make things worse. Sui-Feng's cards were already on the table. Everything was in Yoruichi's hands now, and that idea made her a little queasy. How was she supposed to repair her relationship with Sui-Feng _and _take it further when she couldn't even express her own feeling appropriately? Or at all.

* * *

Sui-Feng walked to the back of the main living area and slide the back shoji open.

Most of the open space in the Seireitei was occupied by meticulously maintained gardens and groves. However, the new Onmitsukido barracks were the last instillation to be built within the Seiretei's walls, and the only available space at the start of construction was the very close to the drainage area that had been used during the main complex's construction.

While the back doors of most of the other Captains opened to lush meadows and soothing sakura groves, Sui-Feng's backyard was a thick mangrove swamp.

Sui-Feng preferred the more organic environment she was now staring at peacefully over the almost clichéd horticulture of the rest of the Seireitei. The gnarled roots of the trees that jutted up out of the water looked far more natural and the wildlife that inhabited the canopies was far more interesting than the small birds and squirrels of Ukitake's garden.

Rei's dried her hands on her hakama as she exited the kitchen. She stopped in her tracks as she turned the corner into the main living area. Sui-Feng was staring wistfully out into the swap, watching an egret peck at the water for small fish.

While Sui-Feng stood, absorbed by the tranquility of the scenery around her, Rei allowed her eyes to settle on the bare skin of Sui-Feng's back.

Rei never understood why Sui-Feng's uniform was so revealing. The few times she had inquired about it, her questions had simply been dismissed or ignored.

Rei's brow furrowed as she watched Sui-Feng. Normally, when Sui-Feng observed the naturalistic surroundings, she was very relaxed. But the muscles under the bare skin of Sui-Feng's back were not able to lie to Rei's expertly trained eyes.

Quietly, as not to disturb her, Rei approached Sui-Feng. Once she got a little closer than arm's reach, she reached out for the woman's shoulders.

"You're so tense," Rei's hands began to gently knead the stiff muscles of Sui-Feng's shoulders with the skill of a masseuse. Sui-Feng's only response was a soft grunt. Cautiously, Rei's hands began to fall lower, until they were at Sui-Feng's side. Slowly, she began to inch them forward until they were almost underneath Sui-Feng's top.

"Rather anxious tonight aren't you?" Sui-Feng chuckled with a small smile.

"I'm sorry!" Rei withdrew her hands and clutched them to her chest. "It's just that you came home all hot and sweaty, and your muscles were all swollen from training, and you were awfully distant at dinner and you seem more stressed than normal. I thought that maybe…"

"It's okay." Sui-Feng smirked as she turned around to face the woman. Gently, she placed her hand behind Rei's neck and pulled her in for a gentle kiss.

* * *

_This is it, _Yoruichi thought to herself as she stood in front of the door to Sui-Feng's quarters. _I'm just going to march in there and tell Sui-Feng the truth. That can't be that difficult, right? I mean, if she can do it, I'm sure I can._

Inhaling deeply, Yoruichi threw the shoji to the side with reckless abandon, as if she would lose her nerve if she took any more time.

"Hey Soi! You...wow!" Yoruichi's eye's made a quick sweep of the room. Just like before, she had expected to find Sui-Feng behind her desk buried on paperwork. What she saw instead was Sui-Feng, pinning a strange woman, whose torso was completely bare, up against the wall. She was kissing the brown haired woman's neck while her right and only hand cupped a breast.

"Yoruichi-sama!" Sui-Feng recoiled from the woman, blushing deeply.

"Yoruichi-sama?"The brown haired woman fumbled with her uniform ineptly in an effort to cover herself.

"I…I'll come back later!" Yoruichi stuttered as she backed out of the room and slammed the shoji shut behind her. Unsure of what to do, Yoruichi ran down the hallway until she nearly reached the exit. There, she slumped up against the wall to catch her breath and recover from the shock of what she just saw.

_Just like I planned it_, Yoruichi thought wryly as a dull pain crept up the left side of her chest.


	3. Chapter 3

**DISCLAIMER:** The rights to all copyrighted material mention henceforth in this document are owned by their respective owners.

Well, consider this the end of my self imposed hiatus.

I know I said that this fic would be on hold until I finish 'The Good Times are Killing Me," but this chapter has been sitting in a state of semi-completeness for too long, so I decided to get it out of the way. I've agonized over it, and I still don't think it's up to snuff, but I've probably over though it at this point. I sincerely apologize for the wait.

Which brings me to my next point; I'm not sure what to do with myself. Should I suspend "The Good Times are Killing Me" and focus on this, or vica-versa. I can't work on both fics at the same time. I've updated the poll on my profile so you all can help me decided what to do.

Speaking of my profile; you can find there a link to all my fics that aren't published here for length reasons.

* * *

Kyoraku sat up at the sound of soft knocking. Stretching, the mildly inebriated man turned his head, searching for the source of the disturbance. It wasn't coming from the front door, which meant that it wasn't Nanao, which in turn meant that he wasn't in any type of trouble, at least that he knew of.

"It's open!" Kyoraku called out to the visitor asking for entrance. Yoruichi slide the back shoji to Kyoraku's room open and entered the quarters in a surprisingly meek manner.

Ever since the "surprise" Yoruichi received yesterday when she entered Sui-Feng's quarters, she was completely at a loss for what to do. The sight that she saw was so completely and wholly unexpected that it totally threw her off her equilibrium. She didn't know how to handle the situation. She felt compelled to talk to someone, but she didn't know who. Kukaku wasn't exactly supportive person in times like these and now that the Aizen kerfuffle has been sorted out, Yoruichi felt no need to spend any time around the man that created the device that ruined hers' and so many other's lives. So, she decided to go to the one person she usually went to in situations that were similar to this.

"Hey, Kyoraku." Yoruichi forced a friendly smile. She really wasn't feeling anywhere near happy at the moment, but far be it from her to actually show that.

"Yoruichi!" Kyoraku greeted his old friend jovially. "Grab yourself some floor. I'll get you something to drink." With a nod, Yoruichi cleared herself a spot on the floor next to Kyoraku's bed with her foot and sat down. Kyoraku handed her a cup of sake, which she took and drained in one gulp.

"Wow," Kyoraku breathed, and before he could say anything else, Yoruichi was already offering up her cup for a refill.

"So," Yoruichi wiped some wayward sake from the corner of her mouth. "How have you been since…well…" Yoruichi could quite finish the sentence.

"I've been fine, I guess." Kyoraku answered with a hint of melancholy. "There was a nice ceremony honoring everybody that died in the Winter War. I tried to get a hold of you so you and Urahara could be there." Kyoraku sloshed the liquid in his cup and stared at it sadly. "There's a monument in his garden, in front of his bonsai tree, if you ever get the urge to visit…"

"But, life goes on." Kyoraku sighed. "Lisa's been coming around here lately." He changed the subject.

"Really?" Yoruichi blinked. She was under the impression that the Vizards had cut all their ties with the Shinigami.

"Yeah, she stops by every once in a while." He paused for a moment. "I thought it would be great, having her around again."

"It's not?" Yoruichi asked.

"Well, Lisa is still Lisa." Kyoraku replied. "It's Nanao that's acting weird. They used to get on so well. I was looking forward to having my favorite ladies together again, but whenever Lisa's around, Nanao get's all snappy and irritable. When Lisa leaves, she's back to normal." He took a sip of sake. "It's the strangest thing.

"Women, huh?" Yoruichi laughed unto her cup and took a drink.

"Oooh!" Kyoraku let out an almost girlish squeal. "You're having lady problems too?"

"Not really," Yoruichi turned her head. "Well, sort of…I mean, it just always seems like all the good ones are taken, you know?"

"Tell me about it." Kyoraku lamented. "The other day I was out in Rukongai, just flirting like I normally do." Yoruichi nodded knowingly. "I came across this fine young woman and started to chat with her. She got real indignant all of the sudden and stormed off, shouting about how her husband would get me discharged for being so rude and disrespectful." Kyoraku finished. "So how about you? Is there a story behind your lament or was that just a general observation?"

Yoruichi mumbled incoherently into her cup and finished the fluid within.

"It was nice seeing you again, but I have to get going." Yoruichi lied again.

"Oh well," Kyoraku shrugged. "You're welcome to stop by _whenever _you like."

"You just never turn it off, do you?" Yoruichi chuckled.

"You're implying I have to turn it on." Kyoraku retorted with a smile.

* * *

Unohana always wondered why all medical grade soaps smelled the same. Over the years, the head physician of the Seireitei had stocked the sinks of the Fourth Division infirmary, hoping that one of them wouldn't leave the air smelling of the pungent odor that was typical of hospitals.

But with every new soap came disappointment. The smell was so pervasive that it had soaked into Unohana's skin. No matter what she did, she couldn't get the sterile smell to leave her.

Removing a towel from a nearby bar, Unohana dried her hands as she watched the red blood circle the drain.

The blood belonged to a new recruit that had failed to pass his entrance exam. He had the particularly bad luck of running into an abnormally strong hollow on his first outing in the World of the Living. Since the entrance exam is conducted by the Gotei 13, he had been brought to Unohana for treatment.

Unfortunately, even Unohana's prodigious healing skills were unable to save him. He was too weak and his wounds were too grave. Soon, the red tint in the sink before her would be all that would be left in this world to testify to his existence.

The Onmitsukido and the Eleventh like to espouse the virtues of solitude. They claim that attachments are a source of weakness. But they both rely on the sense of brotherhood their shared experiences create.

The rhetoric was all designed to create a false sense of independence and strength. The reality was that the division that was most commonly thought of as the weakest actually had the emotionally strongest people.

The members of the Fourth Division could not afford to get attached to people, especially patients. The members of the Fourth were in a very different position than the members of other divisions. It was one thing to make though order that resulted in an injury; it was another thing entirely to fail at saving an already endangered life. It created an incredible amount of stress on the medics, more stress than the most hardened warrior could probably handle.

"Hey, Unohana." The matronly woman turned at the unexpected sound of Yoruichi Shihoin's voice.

"Hello, Yoruichi-dono." Unohana smiled warmly. There was no evidence of the recent loss on her face.

"How have you been?" Yoruichi asked as she followed Unohana as she walked down the halls of the infirmary.

"Things have been hectic." Unohana answered as she flipped through a chart that was just handed to her. "The War took a heavy toll on us, but even though the hostilities have ceased, the wounded keep piling up." Unohana stopped in front of the bed of a groaning Shingami. "Most of the experienced Shingami were either incapacitated or killed in the War, so we have been forced to send the new recruits out to patrol the World of the Living, a task that they are not prepared for. So even though we are no longer at war, we have a much higher casualty rate than we normally do."

"Sounds like they've been keeping you busy," Yoruichi responded.

"Yes," Unohana looked at the clipboard in thoughtful silence. "I am sorry, but I'm afraid that I don't have time to talk right now."

"No, that's okay, I understand." Yoruichi expertly hid her disappointment. She had hoped that Unohana would be able to help her, if she mustered up the courage to actually tell her about her predicament. "I'll stop by later." Yoruichi left Unohana with a wave.

* * *

With a surprisingly calm hand, Rei cut off the excess thread from the suture that she just sewed.

Regenerative and healing kido are very taxing on the user, which is why they were reserved to emergency and combat situations. Many patients became violent and angry when they saw scalpels and bandages.

The misconception was that healing kido was a magical fix-all, capable of mending any injury. The truth was that healing kido is only good for mending minor injuries or stabilizing those in serious condition. Even for someone of Retsu Unohona's skill, healing kido is only a stop-gap; a stall until proper treatment is available.

"Gah," The man on the hospital bed groaned as Rei wrapped the wound in bandages. He was a burly man from the Third Division. "Why couldn't you have just zapped my arm and be done with it?"

"For a little cut like that?" Rei laughed lightly. The man was brought to the Fourth with a gash from a wayward Zanpaktuo. Rei really wished people would pay more attention to what they did. Over half of the people in the infirmary were there because of carless accidents, either on theirs or someone else's part. "Besides, I thought a tough guy like you could handle a few stitches."

Grumbling, the man gently rolled down his sleeve and stood up off the bed. Rei turned to the tray on the stand next to the bed and grabbed a bottle of pills.

"Here," She handed the bottle to him. "Take one of these whenever you need to. They're for the pain." The man took the pills and left.

Humming softly, Rei peeled off her blood stained rubber gloves and threw them into the medical waste bin. Patting her hands on her hakama to dust off the powder that kept the latex from sticking to her skin, Rei picked up the tray that held her medical implements and took it over to the counter, where they awaited sterilization.

With that taken care of, Rei turned her attention to the rest of the patients in the room. There was a man with a ninety-nine degree fever and a woman with a broken leg that was awaiting a cast. Rei walked over to the man with the fever and increased the medication in his I.V. The woman with the broken leg was asleep, so she decided not to disturb her.

Rei walked to a nearby cart and grabbed a tray of instruments off of it. Now there was a patient in a room down the hall that was under her care and it was time to change his bandages.

She was halfway down the hallway when she realized that she hadn't bothered to check just what instruments were on the tray. All she needed were scissors, and maybe a scalp if the scissors didn't work. But what if the wound reopened? She would need clamps and maybe…

Deciding to err on the side of caution, Rei lowered her eyes to take inventory of the instruments on the tray before her.

* * *

Yoruichi hated hospitals. They smelled bad and all the hallways looked the same, making it easy to get lost with just a single wrong turn.

The brown-skinned woman rounded the bend and found a woman walking towards her, her head hung low, seemingly examining the tray she was holding.

The polite thing to do would have been to move out of the way, but the narrow hallways and Yoruichi's sour disposition made that an unappealing prospect. There was no way she was going to inconvenience herself because someone wasn't paying attention.

Yoruichi didn't realize that her naturally stealthy movements were only exacerbating the situation. Her footsteps were silent and her reiatsu was completely masked.

The woman showed no signs of raising her head, so Yoruichi squared her shoulders and braced herself for impact.

The inattentive woman walked into Yoruichi, bumping the tray out of her hand and startling her so much that she fell down. Given the substantial difference in reiatsu, Yoruichi felt more like a brick wall.

"I'm sorry!" Rei apologized reflexively, even though it was really her fault.

"It's okay," Yoruichi replied. She had been prepared to lecture the woman on observing her surroundings, but the apology subdued that urge.

"I was so caught up in work that I didn't even notice you." The brown haired woman sounded contrite enough for Yoruichi to offer her a hand up. Yoruichi extended her hand and the woman accepted.

"Thank you." The woman brushed offer her hakama, then looked up.

"It's okay. No harm, no foul." Yoruichi reassured the apologetic woman. The two women finally looked at each other, and time seemed to stop as they locked eyes.

A moment of tangible awkwardness fell over them. Neither of them had ever been in a similar situation before.

Yoruichi's head was spinning with thoughts and emotions foreign to her. She couldn't ever remember being so consumed with so many different emotions at one time. The thought of Sui-Feng touching this woman over her filled her equal parts jealousy and rage.

"I…uhhh…" The brown haired woman fidgeted nervously. "I'm fifth seat Rei Komatsu."

"Yoruichi Shihoin." Yoruichi smiled, effectively covering up the fact that she was repressing the urge to literally rip the woman in half.

"Forgive me for saying so, but I already knew that, Yoruichi-sama." Rei bowed, using the same suffix as Sui-Feng had.

"_Don't_ call me Yoruichi-sama." Yoruichi snapped. She wasn't allowed to

"I apologize. What would you prefer?" Rei asked.

"I'm not a noble anymore, so just Yoruichi will do." Yoruichi's face quickly regained its carefree façade.

"Very well." Rei nodded.

Yoruichi Shihoin was a mystery to Rei. By now, hers' and Sui-Feng's fight during the Ryoka incident had become legendary, though nobody knew the whole truth of what happened during. Beyond that, she didn't know much about Yoruichi. She knew that she used to be Sui-Feng's superior officer and that the two were close but that was about it.

The way people talked about them made Rei nervous. What was Yoruichi to Sui-Feng? A friend? A mentor? A lover?

"I don't know how much longer you plan on staying in the Seiretei, but I am sure that Sui-Feng would be delighted if you joined us for dinner this evening." Rei offered. Normally, she wasn't so up front about the nature of her's and Sui-Feng's relationship. But given the nature of their first meeting, Rei saw no reason for pretences.

"Dinner?" Yoruichi thought for a moment, still cringing inwardly at Rei's use of the word "us".

In all honesty, the last thing she wanted to do was eat dinner with the woman that was sleeping with Sui-Feng. But it was an excellent opportunity to gain valuable information on her situation. She knew virtually nothing about Rei, and this dinner presented an excellent opportunity to better get to know her enemy.

"Sure, that sounds like fun." Yoruichi flashed her brightest, fake smile.

"Great," Rei smiled. "We usually eat at around six-thirty, but you are welcome to stop by earlier if you like."

"Sounds like a plan." Yoruichi nodded and the two women parted ways, both wondering just how much information they could get out of one another later that evening.


	4. Chapter 4

**DISCLAIMER:** The rights to all copyrighted material mention henceforth in this document are owned by their respective owners.

Hey! Remeber this fic? I sure hope so. Save for a few one-shots here and there, the majority of my time will be spent on this fic for at least a while. Until I get distracted by another new idea...

My first update using "Sui-Feng!" Fuck Yeah!

* * *

The wind swept down from the mountains, creating a deafening roar as the invisible force rattled the leaves of the trees as it passed through.

All around Sui-Feng, the shoots of bamboo swayed gently with the wind, creating a disorienting illusion not dissimilar to the waves of the ocean.

As quickly as the wind came, it went, leaving an almost deafening silence in its wake. There was no chirping of birds or scurrying of small creatures. The only sound Sui-Feng could hear besides her own rhythmic breathing was the gurgling of a far off stream.

Readying herself, Sui-Feng parted her feet. Instinctively, she leaned to her left to center her weight. In one swift motion, faster than the eye could see, she lifted and extended her left leg while pivoting on her right.

Her feet fell into the places that had held mere seconds before as she watched the bamboo split and fall.

Breaking bamboo was not an impressive feat in and of itself. Anyone could fracture the resilient plant with enough force. What was impressive was that the breaks on all the shoots that lay before Sui-Feng were all clean, as if created by a blade.

Sui-Feng let out a heavy sigh and let her posture relax. Normally, she would not be so proud of herself for such an accomplishment. She had been able to cleanly cut bamboo without a blade for centuries. However, since the loss of her arm, she has had to retrace her steps and relearn several fundamentals.

In the beginning, Sui-Feng had focused on raw power. Her strikes and blows were wild and fierce, in an attempt to compensate. The bamboo would shatter and splinter. But today's feat was very important. Not only had she regained her strength, but she was starting to regain her finesse.

Again, this alone was nothing to be proud of. The entirety of Sui-Feng's fighting style relied on precision, not brute force. It was more a mental exercise than a physical; involving the concentration of her reiatsu. And concentration in any form was a difficult task when your emotions were in a torrent.

Sui-Feng left the bamboo grove and walked back to the stream. Near the edge of the water lay a large, flat stone. Crossing her legs, Sui-Feng sat on the stone in a meditative state. Normally, in times like these, Sui-Feng would take the opportunity to commune with Suzumebachi. But today, all Sui-Feng wanted to do was let the serenity of the area calm her.

She currently sat a few kilometers from the Seireitei. Captain-level training was a very dangerous affair, often involving a large amount of collateral damage, which was why so few of them actively trained. Sui-Feng didn't have that luxury. As the head of the Onmitsukido, she needed to be in top form at all times. Recent events had shown that even Captains could be criminals.

But there were other, less pragmatic reasons for Sui-Feng's choice of training locale. Though she wouldn't admit it to anyone, she enjoyed the scenery. The peace and tranquillity helped clear her head and ease her nerves, which was exactly what she needed at a time like this.

Fate has never been kind to Sui-Feng. It seemed that every time things started to turn her way, they just as quickly fell apart on her. Though looking back, Sui-Feng could see that she hadn't done much to help her lot in life.

The rapid succession of the death of her brothers was huge blow to Sui-Feng. They were the only ones who really understood her. They all shared the experience of growing up as Fengs together. Yet she did not grieve them, publicly or privately. She kept telling herself that it was because of their weakness that they had died, and tears would lead her down the same road.

The grief that she refused to express over them eventually manifested itself in a still somewhat lingering case of clinical depression, as well as various self-destructive habits such as self-affliction and starvation. Luckily, the Onmitsukido was a dangerous place so nobody asked where all the new scars came from.

Then, after years of dedicated service spent wandering though the lower echelons, Sui-Feng was promoted to the personal guard of Yoruichi Shihoin. The promotion alone was enough to pull Sui-Feng up from her out of her depressed state, but the woman she was now assigned to protect was what really helped raise Sui-Feng from the brink.

In Yoruichi, Sui-Feng found a kindred spirit. Having shared very similar childhoods, Sui-Feng felt that Yoruichi was the first person since her brother that fully understood her. Her time spent serving under Yoruichi was the first time Sui-Feng could say that she was truly happy.

Sui-Feng was sent into a similar state as the Onmitsukido in the time following Yoruichi's betrayal. The loss left the organization almost completely decapitated, having already lost Urahara not but a few years ago, and his role as the head of the Keiratai had yet to be filled. While Marenoshin struggled to keep the divisions running as the acting Captain, Sui-Feng's state of shock left her practically useless.

The malaise eventually gave way to a consuming drive to obtain the Captaincies that Yoruichi left vacant, not out of any sense of duty, but so that she would be the one to apprehend the defectors, personally. She trained relentlessly, alienating herself form the people she had once served with. To Sui-Feng, there would soon just be soldiers. Best to cut ties with them as cleanly as possible.

Yoruichi's reappearance was almost like a new beginning for Sui-Feng. For the first time, she was able to work with Yoruichi not as a subordinate, but as an equal, though she often deferred to the older woman since she had more information in regards to the situation that they were in. Things were going so well for her, until Yamamoto gave her the order to move out to the decoy Karakura.

There, standing on the edge of the abyss, Sui-Feng then made possibly the most foolish choice in her life; she chose to confess her love to Yoruichi. She had prepared herself for ridicule and outrage. The notion was preposterous on so many levels. Sui-Feng hadn't prepared herself for outright dismissal.

Yoruichi disappeared again after the Winter War, but unlike the first time, Sui-Feng wasn't surprised. In fact, she was grateful. She didn't know how she could face her again after such an embarrassing display of weakness.

However, unlike all the other times before, Sui-Feng actually did the right thing. Her life did not freeze in place; in fact, she made quite a few great leaps forward. And then Yoruichi suddenly and inexplicably reappeared.

Sui-Feng couldn't quite articulate how she felt about Yoruichi's being around again. On the one hand, she was somewhat relived to see her again, as the fact that Yoruichi sought her out meant that there was some hope of salvaging their relationship. Sui-Feng would rather keep the woman as a friend than lose her entirely.

But on the other hand, Yoruichi never did anything without a purpose, and to her knowledge, there was no real reason for Yoruichi to be here. Her presence was perplexing and somewhat worrying.

Sui-Feng's thought's turned outward as she felt the heat on her body change. Opening her eyes, she saw that the sun had started to dip behind the surrounding mountains, which meant that her training was over for the day.

Leaning over, Sui-Feng dipped her hand into the cool water of the stream and washed the sweat from her face. She grabbed her haori off of the nearby branch that she usually hung it off and put it on. Deftly, she tied the sash around her waist, an act that took her several hours to re-learn one-handed, donned Suzumebachi, and left.

Her extraordinary speed brought her back within the Seireitei's walls in under a minute. Once there, she decided to slow her pace and walk the rest of the way.

Evening was setting in and the whole of the Seireitei was calming. Since the Gotei 13 had returned to peace-time protocol, the average Shinigami's day ended with the daily training, which varied from Division to Division. Only a handful of Shinigami were unlucky enough to have evening and night patrols, the rest were free to do as they pleased.

All around her, Sui-Feng could see enlisted men retreating to their quarters as the smell of fresh meals wafted though the air. Sui-Feng couldn't restrain a small smirk as the scent filled her nostrils.

_It's always about food with her_, Sui-Feng thought to herself as she thought of the woman that was most likely cooking dinner for her right now.

Rei had a strong affinity to food. Whenever Sui-Feng was in a particularly sour mood, she would offer to make her something to eat. Whenever Rei was bored, she cooked. Sui-Feng recalled Rei commenting one time how she was glad that she was in the military because it was a mandatory fitness program.

Sui-Feng approached the gate to her quarters and watched with slight amusement as the guards, who had been slouching and leaning on their poles, now stood erect. The two men saluted their Captain and opened the gate. After a curt nod, Sui-Feng entered the long hallway before her quarters.

The coarse grinding of wood against wood could be heard as Sui-Feng slide the shoji open. Somewhat carelessly, she kicked off her shoes onto the usual spot next to the door, not noticing that they landed next to a very familiar pair of shoes.

Just as she expected, Sui-Feng could hear the sizzling of cooking food coming from the kitchen. Somewhat listlessly, Sui-Feng made her way towards the cooking meal.

The affect this place had never ceased to amaze her. Almost immediately after entering her quarters, a wave of tiredness washed over her. She kept herself going all day with her own personal training and directing the training of the Division that her body involuntarily relaxed once she reached her quarters. The idea that Sui-Feng had a place and person that she could relax around was as foreign to her as it was comforting. And after yesterdays shock, Sui-Feng was looking forward to a relaxing meal.

"Hey Sui!" Every muscle is Sui-Feng's body seized up as she rounded the corner. Sitting cross-legged at the dining table, smiling wide and waving, was Yoruichi.

Sui-Feng's mouth literally hung agape, unable to mobilize itself for speech. Quickly, Rei turned at the sound of Sui-Feng's name and waved her own greeting.

"Hi Sui-Feng!" Rei smiled brightly but remained behind the sizzling pan of food. Her initial reaction was to go to Sui-Feng and bestow some display of affection on her, but she wasn't sure if Sui-Feng was comfortable with that sort of thing in front of other people. They kept things private because relationships between Captains and enlisted men were highly unorthodox, but Rei didn't know how Sui-Feng felt about public displays of affection. Something in her gut told her that she was against them.

"W..wha…?" Sui-Feng stammered, her mouth dry.

"I ran into Yoruichi today at the Fourth," Rei giggled slightly, "And decided to invite her over for dinner so you two could catch up." She clarified, reading the obvious confusion on Sui-Feng's face.

"I came by yesterday to see how you were doing." Yoruichi spoke after she finished her cup of tea. For once, Yoruichi's smile was actually genuine. Her time alone with Rei had been filled with awkward, stilted conversation, if it even could be called that. The two women were obviously uncomfortable around each other and they both were looking forward to having someone familiar around. "But I obviously picked a bad time." She ended teasingly, doing her best Yoruichi impression.

"Sit, sit!" Rei urged and then turned back to the sizzling pan. "I hope you're both hungry. I made unagi and for desert there's mochi ice cream."

* * *

To Rei, the silence that enveloped the room was wholly peculiar. The table was set and the food was served, and yet nobody had said a word in over five minutes. Rei, who was sitting to the right of Sui-Feng, looked between both women a little anxiously.

"So...ummm…" Rei fidgeted. "How did your training go today?" Rei figured that would be a good topic to break the ice, since both women were noted for their combat prowess.

"Fine," Sui-Feng replied evasively. The last things she wanted to do was to go into her shortcomings in front of Yoruichi. The brown-skinned woman sat across from her, and she could feel her eyes on her, probing and searching. But for what?

Slowly, Yoruichi took another measured bite of the eel and rice that was on her plate. The meal was actually quite good, but she didn't want to seem too appreciative of Rei's cooking, so she had to restrain herself.

"Ummm…" Rei squirmed a bit. She was completely at a loss. Perhaps this was a bad idea. She truly didn't know what the relationship between Sui-Feng and Yoruichi was. She assumed it was friendly, but that assumption was based on rumors. Now that she thought about it, Sui-Feng had never mentioned the woman in the two years that they had been together.

"I'm sorry," Yoruichi chuckled after she swallowed her last mouthful. "I'm just still having trouble wrapping my mind around the fact that the fearsome Sui-Feng settled down and basically has a wife now." It was a true statement. The word "wife" caused Rei's checks to flush. "So…how did you two meet?" Starting at the beginning would help Yoruichi get a grasp on the whole situation.

Rei turned to Sui-Feng, but the Chinese woman continued to eat her meal impassively.

"Well," Rei began after seeing no signs from Sui-Feng, "We first met right after the Winter War. She was brought into the Fourth, still badly wounded since she had refused treatment."

"I prefer my wounds to heal naturally, when possible." Sui-Feng interjected, keeping her voice even. It was a half truth. She did prefer her wounds to heal on their own when they could, but that wasn't why she had refused treatment on this occasion.

"At first I didn't pay much attention to her." Rei continued. "I mean I was your nurse, I did my duty. But your wounds were stable and, to be honest, you kind of scared me, so I tried to spend as little time around you as possible." She finished meekly. "I think the first time we actually spoke was a week after you were brought in. I was changing your bandages when I noticed that your food was untouched. I asked you why and you said the food wasn't good."

"It wasn't," Sui-Feng said bluntly. Again it was a half-truth. The food was bad, but that wasn't why she wasn't eating.

"Well, I offered to make her meals myself." Rei turned back to Yoruichi. "The next day, I brought her a freshly cooked meal. She refused it at first, but I had taken the time to make the meal especially for her and I wanted to see it eaten!" She mimicked the stern tone she had used in the moment.

"At first you ate my food just to get rid of me," Rei continued. "But I started bringing her meals regularly and I stayed with her until she finished them. The more time we spent together, the more we started talking…" Her voice trailed off wistfully.

"Since I had lost my arm," Sui-Feng picked up. "When it came time for me to be released, I was going to be assigned a live-in nurse to help me acclimate to life missing an appendage. I requested Rei." She injected a bit of finality in the last statement.

"Wow…" Yoruichi breathed. It was the classic story of the soldier and the nurse; almost too perfect to be true. And yet it was sitting in front of her. "Still, to be so bold about it. I mean there's the rank difference, and the fact that you're both women. I have a hard time believing Sui's willing to break so many rules when it was like pulling teeth to just get her to call me "sama."

"Actually." Rei sipped some tea. "I'm still technically on duty. I've been filing extension requests to Unohana-taicho for quite some time now, and she's been granting them. Personally, I think she knows and is just helping us out."

"Really?" Yoruichi's jaw tightened. "That's…nice…of her."

Sui-Feng continued to eat her meal in relative silence, listening to the other women talk. She just couldn't shake the feeling that there was something more to what was going on. Why else would Yoruichi show up suddenly after such a long and conspicuous absence? Something was not right.

"What's the matter Sui?" Yoruichi asked, shaking Sui-Feng out of her thoughts.

"Nothing's the matter." Sui-Feng replied hastily.

"Yes there is," Yoruichi replied. "You've got that little crease in your eyebrow that you get when something is bothering you and you won't talk about it."

"Oh my goodness!" Rei exclaimed, covering her mouthful of food with her hand. "You've noticed that too?"

"Of course." The relaxed manner in which the statement came out surprised Yoruichi. There was no hint of the bitterness that she felt over the insinuation that Rei somehow knew Sui-Feng better than her. "She keeps so much bottled up inside that you have to learn to read her, or else you'll never get anything out of her. Like how her hands twitches a little when she's antsy…"

"I know! And like how her shoulders get all tense and square when she's angry." Rei squared her own shoulders in imitation.

"I always liked how she chews on her lip when she's nervous." Yoruichi dug back in her memories.

"Really?" Rei looked over to Sui-Feng for a moment. "I've never noticed that before…"

"The best thing though, is when she blushes..." Yoruichi started.

"Yes!" Rei almost squealed. "Whenever she does something even remotely romantic, she blushes. It's so cute!" Both women's heads turned to Sui-Feng, who was, despite her best efforts, now blushing. "It's so adorable and lets me know that you're human." Rei gushed as she rubbed Sui-Feng's arm gently, which only served to deepen the blush. Sui-Feng shot a deathly glare towards Yoruichi, but the combination of the glare and red cheeks only served to elicit laughter from the target, which Rei joined in on.

After she had calmed down, Yoruichi finished off her plate somewhat sadly.

"That was good." Yoruichi finally let the compliment that had been on the tip of her tongue all evening fall.

"Thank you." Rei beamed. "I hope you have room for desert. I made plenty of mochi ice cream." Rei got up and grabbed a platter that had a large pile of multi-colored balls about the size of fist. She placed the platter on the table as she sat and took one for herself and began to nibble at it delicately.

"Yes please!" Yoruichi said eagerly as she took one in each hand, devouring them in two bites each before she took more.

"No thank you." Sui-Feng stood from the table and left. Rei looked a little concerned as Sui-Feng walked away.

"Don't worry about it," Yoruichi said through a mouthful of mochi. "She's just in a huff because we had a little fun at her expense, but she'll be over it in a little bit." Rei looked on with a small amount of amazement at the woman with the courage to fearlessly tease Sui-Feng.

"This mochi is great." Yoruichi complemented as she picked up another ball. "Where did you learn to cook like this?"

"Thanks!" Rei brightened. "Where I come from, if you wanted good food, you had to learn to make it yourself." She grabbed a few of the balls and placed them on another plate. "I'll save these for Sui-Feng, help yourself to the rest." Yoruichi obliged happily.

* * *

Sui-Feng stepped out onto the balcony overlooking the mangrove and let the fresh air fill her lungs in deep breaths.

_What is going on? _Sui-Feng's mind raced. She couldn't figure out what Yoruichi was doing. She was acting completely normal, as if nothing had happened between them. Sui-Feng didn't know what to make of it. But she did know that it was driving her insane.

"Well," Sui-Feng turned around to see Rei walking Yoruichi to the door. "I should probably get going. Now that the whole debacle with Aizen is over, I need to figure out what to do with myself. So you'll probably be seeing me around."

"It was nice meeting you." Rei smiled. "I hope this won't be the only time we have you over."

"I'm never one to turn down a free meal." Yoruichi replied. "See ya Sui, Rei." Yoruichi waved and left. Sui-Feng couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief once Yoruichi was gone.

"Is…everything alright?" Rei asked hesitantly.

"I'm fine." Sui-Feng replied defensively. Rei frowned, be didn't press the matter, instead returning to the dishes that needed cleaning, wondering how long it will take her to "be over it" like Yoruichi said.


	5. Chapter 5

**DISCLAIMER:** The rights to all copyrighted material mention henceforth in this document are owned by their respective owners.

It seems that alot of you guys gave my latest one-shot, "Cool for Cats," a pass. Ignore the terrible name and the characters and just give it a read. I promise, it's good stuff. And if you did the same with "Quarrels," give that a read to.

* * *

"Damn bitch," A bald man currently confined to a bed by his cast encased leg grumbled. "Why couldn't she use that kido I hear so great?" He crossed his arms and frowned. Like the majority of the people that came in and out of the Fourth Division's infirmary regularly, he was a member of the Eleventh and as eager to get back.

Turning to his side, he spotted a rolling stand with various medical implements and pills on it. Casually, he tipped it over. The contents scattered across the ground, creating quite a loud racket.

"Nurse!" He yelled as loudly as he could. Quickly, a small red-head came running out.

"What is it?" The small girl seemed quite worried.

"Clean that up." He pointed to the scattered objects on the ground. The girl's expression changed from worry to irritation as she dropped down to clean up the mess, too agitated to notice the bald man staring down her kosode, taking advantage of the fact that she neglected to put on an undershirt this morning.

"Is there a problem, here?" The man's faced paled at the sound of the matronly voice.

"N...no! Nothing's wrong, Unohana-taicho!" He stammered.

"If for some reason you are unhappy with your treatment here, I will be more than happy to send you back to your division." Unohana smiled warmly. "I hear Kenpachi-taicho is quite accommodating to injuries." The red head couldn't stifle a small giggle as Unohana left, leaving another member of the Eleventh quaking in fear.

From there, Unohana moved to the next ward. These people were not injured, but had fallen to various illnesses. There was no speech here, only the quite sound of breathing and the occasional noise from various monitors. Slowly, as if not to disturb the silence, she walked over to the IV stand of one of the patients to check the fluids.

"Unohana!" The head physician's eyes closed slowly as Yoruichi's voice rang through the ward, a pained expression washed across her face briefly

"I'm going to have to ask that you lower your voice." Unohana didn't turn away from the IV she was checking. "These people are sick and need rest. And forgive me if I am wrong, but I am unaware of any cause for alarm."

"I need to talk to you." Yoruichi obliged and lowered her voice.

"Unfortunately, I am unable to talk right now." Unohana walked to the next inhabited bed, still not looking to Yoruichi. "Feel free to wait in my office while I finish my rounds."

Scowling, Yoruichi walked off. Luckily, there was no one in the halls to get in her way this time. She reached Unohana's office and entered, falling back heavily in the seat in front of the woman's desk. The fact that the seat was comfortable helped ease her agitation.

That small comfort became a cold one as five minutes melted away to a half-hour and a half-hour gave way to a full hour.

Finally, after watching the second hand of the clock on Unohana's wall circle three-thousand, nine-hundred and sixty times, Yoruichi heard the door open.

"I thought you said you just had to finish your rounds?" Yoruichi snapped once Unohana closed the door.

"I did," Unohana confirmed as she walked back behind her desk. On her way, she grabbed a small wrapped candy from a dish. "You just so happened to catch me at the beginning of it." Carefully, she unwrapped the candy. It was a caramel ring with a cream center. She placed it in her mouth and chewed it slowly. "Now, what can I do for you, Yoruichi-dono?"

"I know about Sui and Rei," Yoruichi replied flatly, her eyes narrow.

"Yes, Rei has been doing quite well in helping Sui-Feng-taicho readjust to life with only one arm." Unohana smiled warmly. "I'm considering starting a rehabilitation division and appointing her as the head."

"Cut the crap," Yoruichi bit back. "I _know_ about Sui and Rei." Yoruichi's expression saddened momentarily before regaining its righteous fury. "How could you do this to me?"

"I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I don't know what I've done?" Unohana looked mildly confused.

"Please, you're Okaa-taicho," Yoruichi threw her head back in exasperation. "You know everything about everyone. Sometimes...before they even know it about themselves."

"I am afraid that you have me mistaken for someone else." Unohana laughed lightly. "I am no psychic. However," Yoruichi's eyes were snapped wide open as she felt the air in the room change. A chill ran up Yoruichi's spine and it became hard for her to breathe. Even though Unohana's smile never faltered, the only thing Yoruichi could feel was what she could only describe as menace. "Even if I were some sort of clairvoyant, like you claim, I was unaware I was under any obligation to use that information to your exclusive benefit."

Yoruichi finally regained the ability to breathe when the door behind her unexpectedly opened.

"I…Is everything alright, Taicho?" It was Isane. She obviously ran here, as she was breathing heavily, and she looked more than a little frightened.

"Yes, everything is fine, Isane. Please escort Yoruichi-san out of the infirmary." Unohana spoke calmly. Yoruichi quickly stood up, having regained some of her composure.

"I'm fine," Yoruichi shoved her way past Isane and quickly made her way out of the Fourth Division compound.

Once out of sight of the women, Yoruichi practically ran out of the Fourth Division compound. The fresh air of the outdoors hit her lungs, but it was hardly reassuring. It took all her self control not to scream and pull out her hair where she stood.

Yoruichi hadn't expected things to be easy for her, but no part of her anticipated things going this badly. She had to find Sui-Feng and try to salvage the situation before things got any worse than they already were.

* * *

It had only been a day, but Sui-Feng was already beginning regret her decision to return to full administrative duties.

Since the loss of her arm, Sui-Feng had spent the majority of her time on duty training to get back up to full combat strength. Now that she felt comfortable with martial state, she decided that it was time to return back to actively running the two Divisions, a task that had been previously handled by several of her seated officers and, most unfortunately, Omeada.

Already, Sui-Feng missed her daily training. The Captains were truly wasted on a day-to-day basis. There was very little of what they did in running the Division's that couldn't be handled by a computer or a well trained secretary at most.

And yet here she was, walking around the Second Division compound, literally, looking for something to do. It was unfortunate that this was a part of the recovery process. Until she resumed her full duties prior to her injury, Unohana would not sign off on her undertaking any missions.

A sudden, shooting pain stopped the Chinese woman in her tracks. He face contorted as she instinctively reached to assuage the hurting. Her heart panged, as it did every time, as her hand found only the empty sleeve.

_Two years and they still haven't quite stopped_, Sui-Feng thought as she looked around. The phantom pains were usually brought on by stress, which made sense, given her current situation.

Thankfully, there was no one around to see her. She quickly composed herself and turned around, now with a destination in mind.

* * *

_Oh good, she's alone, _Yoruichi's relief melted through her posture when she spotted Sui-Feng walking along one of the causeways of the Second Division compound.

That relief soon turned to confusion as Yoruichi watched Sui-Feng turn, what was in her mind, the wrong way at an intersection. Now cautious, Yoruichi quietly began to tail Sui-Feng, because the last time she barged into a situation like this, she got more than an eyeful.

Stealthily, Yoruichi darted form corner to corner as she watched Sui-Feng winder her way down in roads and paths Yoruichi had no recollection of. Finally, Sui-Feng stopped in front of a store house. Removing a key from her haori, she unlocked it and stepped inside.

Yoruichi waited before approaching. Once she was sure there were no signs of activity from the store room, she cautiously approached.

Pressing her ear against the door, Yoruichi could hear the sound of another door being closed.

The lock that held the door closed was nothing special. It was strictly mechanical, with not even kido reinforcing it. It didn't take much effort for Yoruichi to pick it and slip inside.

The inside was as plain as the outside. There were only a few boxes on the ground. What was perplexing was that there was no sign of Sui-Feng, and more befuddling, no sign of another exit.

Yoruichi took a few quiet steps around the store room, watching the dust fall though the rays of sunshine streaming through the window.

She stopped walking when she felt something different about the floor. A small patch of it bowed under her weight, unlike the rest of the wooden surface. Bending down, Yoruichi noticed a small seam in the grain of the wood. Sliding a box to the side revealed an inlayed handle and hinges. Slowly, she lifted the hatch, thankful that the hinges were well greased. Below was a short drop followed by some stairs.

Yoruichi gracefully dropped down and closed the hatch behind her, immediately feeling the humidity increase as she did so. Intrepidly, she made her way down the stairs.

* * *

There was a rumor going around that the Second Division had hot springs built in the Barracks. As with all rumors, there is a grain of truth to it. While Sui-Feng had used Omeada's funds to install hot springs, she did not for the benefit of all the enlisted men.

Currently, there were only two. There was one for the officers and a private one for her use only, which is where she currently was.

The room was rather small; not much larger than the storeroom above it. The relaxingly low lighting belayed how almost dangerously slick the humidity had made the tile floor. In the middle was a warm pool of water, emanating heat though the room. This particular spring made no pretense for naturalness, and thus lacked the rocks and stones that had come to be associated with hot springs. If it had water jets, it would be what the humans call a hot tub.

On the other side of the room some towels and a clothes rack. Sui-Feng quickly stripped down and placed her clothes on the rack, as well as the unraveled bandage that used to cover the remains of her left arm. She left the towels where they were.

Slowly, Sui-Feng lowered herself into the heated water, enjoying the sensation of the warmth enveloping her. She could feel her muscles relaxing one-by-one. Submerging herself up to her neck, she rested her head on the floor and closed her eyes, enjoying the relaxing heat.

"Nice digs."

Sui-Feng sat bolt upright and her eyes shot open. She calmed down slightly when she realized it was Yoruichi that spoke, but not much. "W…What are you doing here, Yoruichi-sama?" Sui-Feng had long-since stopped asking "how" of Yoruichi. Sui-Feng sank back into the water slightly, obscuring her breasts.

"I saw you headed someplace strange and decided to follow you." Yoruichi replied almost proudly. "Mind if I join you?"

"Yoruichi-sama I…" Before Sui-Feng could offer up a protest, Yoruichi had already begun undressing. With great effort, Sui-Feng managed to avert her gaze.

"Ah!" Yoruichi sighed as she fell into the water, creating a small splash. "Just right." Sui-Feng turned back to face the woman, only to find Yoruichi's chest still completely above the waterline, her arms spread out behind her. "I've got to say, I didn't even have my own personal hot spring." She smirked, letting her eyes drink in as much of Sui-Feng as she could.

"Omeada may not be the most ideal Lieutenant," Sui-Feng eyes fell to the water as she slumped down until the bottom of what used to be her left arm fell below the water. She could feel Yoruichi looking at it. "But his wallet has proven useful enough."

"Yeah, you've really fixed this place up," Yoruichi replied. "The heated floors are a nice touch." Sui-Feng did not respond. After a few moments of silence, Yoruichi spoke again. "So….have you ever brought Rei down here?"

"No," Sui-Feng mumbled, a little regretfully.

"Huh," Yoruichi couldn't help a small smile at that.

"I have to get back to work," Sui-Feng said hurriedly and got out of the spring with equal rush. She quickly grabbed a towel and dried herself off and hastily dressed herself afterwards, moving too fast to notice that Yoruichi wasn't even pretending to not stare.

Yoruichi got out of the water as well, letting the droplets of water roll down her body as she raised her hands above her head to stretch, acutely aware that she had finally arrested Sui-Feng's attention. She finished up stretching her limbs with a satisfied moan.

"That was nice," Yoruichi said as she dried herself off. Sui-Feng didn't reply, but instead hurried out. Yoruichi quickly dressed herself and followed. By the time she finally caught up, Sui-Feng was back on the main causeway of the Second Division.

"Where are you headed now?" Yoruichi inquired.

"I have some papers to finish up in my office." Sui-Feng lied, hoping the doldrums of red tape would scare off Yoruichi.

"I'll keep you company," Yoruichi replied. "Paperwork always goes faster when you have a distraction." Sui-Feng gritted her teeth as she rounded the corner.

The two women reach Sui-Feng's office not long after. Sui-Feng slid the shoji open and made way for Yoruichi. Once she was inside, Sui-Feng slid the shoji shut.

"Why are you here, Yoruichi-_sama_?" The sentence sounded far more strained and far less angry than Sui-Feng intended it to.

"I…" Yoruichi could see it; the pain on Sui-Feng's face. And she could hear it in her words. And yet, her voice failed her. She opened her mouth, but found it dry and unable to form the words she wanted to say. Her breath became rapid as she started to panic.

Afraid of losing the moment, Yoruichi let her instincts take over, falling back on the one form of expression that has never failed her. In one swift motion she pounced on Sui-Feng, pinning her up against a wall with a hammer-like kiss.

Sui-Feng was too stunned, too elated to do anything but stand there as she felt Yoruichi's mouth on her own and her tanned hands drop from her shoulders and start travelling lower.

Lost in the moment, Yoruichi's hands began to find their way beneath Sui-Feng's clothes when she suddenlyfelt the Chinese woman's fist collide with her eye socket with such tremendous force knocking Yoruichi to the ground.

"Is that it?" Sui-Feng looked down on Yoruichi, her eyes smoldering. She could never remember a time when she had been so infuriated. But as much rage she had for Yoruichi at this moment, she held double for herself.

"Is that why you came back?" Sui-Feng literally spat on the ground, trying to rid herself of the lingering sensation of the kiss. She hated how good it had tasted "You were just horny and looking for a quick lay?" Her fist clenched and unclenched. "And you thought that I was sniveling and pathetic enough to just let you have your way with me?" She remembered the feeling of Yoruichi's hands on her. She hated how right it had felt. "After all you've done to me? After all the shit you've put me through?"

Yoruichi looked up at Sui-Feng, who was literally shaking now, in stunned silence. Before she could even contemplate a response, Sui-Feng stormed out.

This time, Yoruichi could not control herself. She fell back onto the floor as a frustrated scream escaped her. The scream quickly became choked and constrained and her eyes began to sting in a manner that was so long forgotten it was almost alien.

For the first time in over half a millennia, Yoruichi cried.


	6. Chapter 6

**DISCLAIMER:** The rights to all copyrighted material mention henceforth in this document are owned by their respective owners.

After a breif delay in which this chapter was taken hostage and hused as leverage to get CaptainYoruichi to finally finish up her seminal Forced Perspective, here is Chapter 6.

Not much else to say. Go read Forced Perspective!

* * *

Kyoraku's eyes opened almost as suddenly as the perpetually unsecured backdoor to his villa. Not that opening his eyes helped matters much, since the only light in the room came from the now opened door.

"Kyooooooraaaaaakuuuuuu?" The slurred cooing of a woman's voice wafted through the silence, followed by the sound of the crinkling of papers and rattling of cups as the woman's feet kicked away the debris in her path. "Kyooooooraaaaaakuuuuuu?" The woman called out again.

This hardly being the first time something like this had happened to him, Kyoraku fumbled around in the dark for a few seconds until he found the switch to the lamp near his bed. The intruder was staggered by the sudden flood of light, though Kyoraku would have been too, had he been standing.

It was Yoruichi staggering towards him. Her orange jacket was open and stained and in her right hand was a bottle. Most surprising, however, were her eyes. They were puffy and bloodshot, like she had been crying and around her left was a dark ring of bruises.

"Yoruichi?" Kyoraku mumbled groggily, not thoroughly convinced yet that he was actually awake.

"Mmmmmm," was Yoruichi reply. Now that she was closer, he could see that her skin was flush. "Toonite isa very speshal nite," Yoruichi was standing on Kyoraku's bed now, a foot on either side of him. She took a swig out of whatever was in the bottle. ""Because toonite," Her legs gave out and she fell onto Kyoraku's stomach, knocking the wind out of the man and finally convincing him that he was awake. "I'm all yours." Yoruichi lowered her face closer to his, but violently jerked it away when she felt the bristle of his beard.

"Yoruichi," Kyoraku sighed, not even trying to hide his disappointment. The smell of her breath absolved what little mystery there was as to the contents of the bottle. "You're drunk." He uttered the phrase every person dealing with an inebriated individual was obligated to say at least once.

"I thought that's how you liked your girls," The words practically fell out of Yoruichi's mouth.

"Yeah," he nodded, "But I also like my girls to not be into other girls." He picked her up and slid out from under her. "I like the pretend lesbians that are only doing it for attention, not the real kind."

"Just fucking shove it in me!" Yoruichi screamed almost rabidly, grabbing onto Kyoraku before he could but a safe distance between them. "Make me not want her anymore!" On the last word, she broke out in a wailing sob, relaxing her grip enough for Kyoraku to break free.

Kyoraku watched in utter bewilderment as Yoruichi curled into a tight ball on his bed, crying like he couldn't honestly remember seeing a woman cry before

Wanting to remedy the situation before someone heard a woman sobbing in his room and assumed the worst, Kyoraku went to his desk and started searching in the pockets of his haori, which was just thrown on top of a pile of neglected papers. After a few seconds of rummaging, he produced a small pouch. Loosening the draw string, he produced a small pill and took it over to Yoruichi.

"Up we go," Kyoraku grabbed Yoruichi by her shoulders. The tears had started to subside but she was still shaking and appeared to be on the brink of hyperventilating. "This," Kyoraku held the pill up for Yoruichi to see, "will sober you right up. Put it in your check and close your teeth." He instructed and handed the pill to her. She hesitantly took it, placed it in her check, and closed her mouth.

How loud the pop that accompanied Kyoraku's palm against Yoruichi's cheek was almost as surprising as the force of the hand. The pill in her mouth broke against her teeth, and Yoruichi could feel a fizzing in her mouth, a fizzing that spread down her throat and through her whole body, neutralizing the alcohol.

The effects were almost instantiations. The alcoholic flush drained from her cheeks as her eyes refocused and her head stopped bobbing and rolling.

"Couldn't you have just told me to bite it?" Yoruichi finally asked after some two full minutes.

"You looked like you needed that," Kyoraku replied as he pulled out the chair behind his desk and pushed some papers off of it so he could take a seat.

"Yes, my face needed some more abuse." She rubbed her cheek tenderly.

"Yeah, that's a mighty fine shiner you've got there," Kyoraku grabbed a cup and bottle and poured himself a drink. "Mind explaining how you got it?"

"I'd…rather…" Yoruichi turned away from Kyoraku's gaze. Her cheeks reddened.

"Five minutes ago, you stumbled in here drunk and begging me to 'shove it in you' and then you started crying. We're well past that, Yoruichi." Kyoraku chastised before emptying his cup.

"Well…" Yoruichi hesitated for a moment. "It's Sui." Kyoraku's piercing gaze and her compromised position broke her resolve.

"Woo boy," Kyoraku breathed. "Lay it on me." He refilled his cup.

"I…made a move and she clocked me." Yoruichi gave him the abridged version, leaving out the more embarrassing things on her part and Rei all together. She was sure telling people about the intimate details of Sui-Feng's personal life wouldn't help the situation. And on top of that, she was relatively certain Rei was breaking some type of rule, and Yoruichi didn't feel that Rei deserved the punishment that would accompany being found out.

"What!" Kyoraku burst out laughing, nearly choking on his sake. Under any other circumstances, the look Yoruichi gave him would have chilled him to the bone, but now it only served to make him laugh even harder. "Don't give me that look, there's a lot to laugh at here."

"Really, like what?" Yoruichi's voice was an unamused monotone.

"Well, for starters, Sui-Feng gave you a black-eye for making a pass at her." Kyoraku put his drink down before he ended up choking to death on it. "That's just crazy talk!" Kyoraku erupted in another fit of laughter.

Yoruichi's expression softened as she let out a small chuckle herself. She wondered how Sui-Feng would react if she had heard that.

"Secondly," He collected himself and continued. "You made a move? You just made a move on her? There were rumors about you two a _century_ ago and you're telling me that you just tried something a few hours ago?" He sounded less bemused and more amazed at this. Yoruichi could only sigh and hang her head in shame.

"So what should I do?" Yoruichi asked after a few moments.

"Well, if I were you," Kyoraku took a drink. "I would go and get some sleep, because waking someone who just punched you up in the middle of the night is generally a bad thing, clean up, go find Sui-Feng, take my lumps, because honestly, you deserve them, and get things sorted out."

"I…don't think it's going to be that easy," She replied hesitantly.

"Not if you wait another hundred years," Kyoraku scolded. "Oh, and no more drinking." He leaned forward and snatched the bottle in her hand away from her. "I know they call it liquid courage, but I think its best that you go at this one sober."

"Yeah," Yoruichi sighed and picked herself up. "Thanks for not taking of the advantage of…the situation."

"There's a fine line between playboy and rapist." Kyoraku replied. "I do my best not to cross it. And no offense, but I doubt it would have been worth the morning after." Yoruichi let out a small chuckle.

"Well, wish me luck," Yoruichi straightened her posture. "I'm going to need as much as I can get."

"Ah, you'll be fine." Kyoraku waved. Yoruichi only laughed wryly and left.

"Those two make the cutest train wreck." He held the bottle that he took from Yoruichi up to his ear and shook it. There was still some in it. Shrugging, Kyoraku took a swig.

* * *

What woke Rei up wasn't the sunlight streaming through the windows, because there were none, but the knot in her neck that came from her having passed the night on what was most certainly not a pillow.

Rei never found Sui-Feng to be an exceptionally warm lover. She wasn't selfish, but when it came to the softer aspects of love making, Rei always found her less than receptive.

Which was why last night was so surprising. Sui-Feng had been extraordinarily affectionate, albeit in her own way. Not only had she been the one to initiate the intimacy, but when Rei drew close to her afterwards, Sui-Feng didn't pull away like she normally did. Rei was so caught up in enjoying the closeness that she had drifted off with her head resting on Sui-Feng's shoulder.

"Oops!" Immediately shoot up with a small squeak, quickly clasping her hands over her mouth upon realizing that Sui-Feng's eyes were still closed, as if it would stifle the noise. But it was too late. Sui-Feng let out a groggy moan as her head jerked to the side, as if slapped by the noise.

"I'm sorry!" Rei apologized through her clasped hands. Sui-Feng didn't reply, but turned to the nearby clock. She cursed under her breath as she read the time.

Sui-Feng maintained her sleeping patternsso meticulously that she didn't need an alarm clock. However, this also meant that there was no safety net for when that pattern was interpreted, just as it was last night.

It took some time for the gravity of what transpired between her and Yoruichi earlier to sink past the indignant fury. And even the night's activities with Rei weren't enough to calm her mind and nerves enough for her to get some sleep. So she had passed most of the night staring at the ceiling, thinking over what had happened.

The first thought that plagued Sui-Feng was that Yoruichi had kissed her, a woman. Fondled her, even. Sui-Feng couldn't recall seeing or hearing anything that gave even the slightest indication that Yoruichi had any inclination for women, but it made some sense that she hadn't. For the majority of the time Sui-Feng knew her, Yoruichi's surname carried a significant amount of weight Sui-Feng sympathized with the need to keep things like that a secret, being in a similar situation herself.

The second, more confounding thought was the fact that Yoruichi had kissed and groped _her_. Sui-Feng couldn't deny that there had always been some vague flirtation in the way Yoruichi acted towards her, but that was hardly anything noteworthy. Yoruichi was a notorious flirt. And when Sui-Feng did confess her feeling for Yoruichi to her, she had been all but rejected.

There were so many questions. Why her, why now? Nothing made sense, and it was driving Sui-Feng insane.

Sighing tiredly, Sui-Feng sat up slowly, grimacing in pain as she put weight on her arm to support herself.

"I kind of slept on it." Rei said sheepishly. "I'm sorry."

"Its fine," Sui-Feng replied, rolling her shoulder to stretch it out. "I'm going to get clean-up." She slid out of bed and headed for the bathroom. Dreamily, Rei fell back onto the bed, enjoying the warmth. It was times like these that Rei liked to pretend that Sui-Feng hadn't lost her arm fighting beings that she couldn't have even survived the presence of, let alone combat.

Sui-Feng always took depressingly short showers to Rei, so it wasn't long before she re-emerged from the bathroom. Rei did her best to try to be discrete as she watched her get dressed.

"Do you want me to make you something?" Rei asked as Sui-Feng tied the sash around her waist. Quite a feat to watch her do one-handed.

"There's no time." Sui-Feng replied, shaking her head.

"Oh," Rei slouched, a little disappointed.

"I have to go." Sui-Feng tied Suzumebachi to the small of her back and headed for the door. To Rei's surprise, Sui-Feng paused for a moment in the door frame. She looked back, seemingly to say something, but only for a brief moment before she turn back and left.

* * *

It really disappointed Yoruichi that staring at something for long enough didn't allow you to exert control over it. Then again, it was probably best that people couldn't do that, because if that were possible, the shoji to Sui-Feng's office would have already burst into flames ten times over by now.

Yoruichi spent the better part of the last hour staring at that shoji. She could feel Sui-Feng on the other side, likely filling out some paperwork. That's what she normally did after lunch. She wondered if Sui-Feng could sense her. She wasn't making a consorted effort to conceal her presence, but then Seireitei was a busy place and it was easy to miss someone if you weren't looking for them. And she was almost positive Sui-Feng wasn't looking for her.

_Okay, you can do this, _Yoruichi mentally psyched herself up for the twentieth time. _You've done worse things than tell someone that you have feelings for them. _

Clenching her fists, Yoruichi finally took the first step. Her foot felt like it was made of lead. And so did the other. Each step took so much effort that it would likely look hilarious for anyone watching.

It took four agonizing steps, but Yoruichi finally made it across the short walkway and up to the door. Her arm felt just as heavy when she lifted it to open the shoji. She was ashamed to find that her hand shaking.

As soon as she placed her palm on the wooden frame, Yoruichi felt a tight knot in her stomach; a violent twisting that sent her doubling over, clenching her stomach and clasping her mouth. Quickly, she bolted around the corner and into a small alcove between some buildings and vomited; mostly bile and sake, since she hadn't gotten around to eating yet today.

_I really am pathetic_, Yoruichi thought, wiping her mouth on the sleeve of her jacket while she caught her breath. Then she remembered that someone from the Fourth would likely be dispatched to clean that up, and that someone might potentially be Rei. Yoruichi wasn't quite sure how she felt about that.

Stowing her soiled jacket in a nearby crate, Yoruichi marched back to Sui-Feng's office. Again, her hand hesitated. Again, she felt that knot, but she was able to ignore it this time. Gritting her teeth, she slid the shoji open and stepped inside.

As painful as everything before was, it paled in comparison to now. Sui-Feng was in fact sitting behind her desk with several papers in front of her. However, her full, withering attention was focused intensely on Yoruichi.

It didn't last long, though. As intense as the anger on Sui-Feng's face was, it left just as quickly, replaced by a startling impassiveness.

"What do you want?" Sui-Feng lowered her gaze back to the forms in front of her. The apathy in her voice stung Yoruichi harder than all the rage in the world. She saw the black ring around her eye but choose not to say anything about it, mostly because she didn't know how she felt about it. Part of her was ashamed of herself for marring that beautiful face, but the rest was equally proud that she had been able to leave a mark.

"Hey Sui," Yoruichi did her very best to sound like her typical nonchalant self, but her nervousness and apprehension was clear in her voice. It was a strange thing for both women to hear. "I…I came here to say I'm sorry." She took a few hesitant steps until she was standing directly in front of Sui-Feng's desk.

"Fine, apology accepted." Sui-Feng didn't look up from the requisition form.

"That's…it?" Yoruichi blinked.

"We both know that you would have kept badgering me until I forgave you." Sui-Feng moved the form to the pile of other completed forms. "This saves us precious time."

"I'm serious, Sui." Yoruichi's voice regained some of its confidence. "I came to tell say I'm sorry for…well…everything."

"You're sorry?" Sui-Feng finally looked at Yoruichi, meeting her eyes. "You're sorry?" She let out a vicious laugh that made Yoruichi cringe. "Is that really all that you have to say for yourself?" She asked incuriously. Yoruichi could only shift uncomfortably. "I tell you that I love you and…"

"Dammit Sui!" Yoruichi's fist came down so suddenly and with such force that everything unsecured, including Sui-Feng, jumped. "Why did you have to go and say it?" She was leaning on the desk now with both hands on its surface, so that her head was at the same level as Sui-Feng's. "Of course I know you love me. _Everyone knows! _You're not exactly subtle about it!"

"So…you really knew…" Sui-Feng mumbled. There had been part of her that always entertained the notion that she had overacted to a slip of the tongue. That perhaps Yoruichi simply hadn't known what to say and had fallen back to teasing her because that's what Yoruichi always did and Sui-Feng simply hadn't gotten the joke at the time. "What type of person does that?" The anger returned in full force. "Strings along someone they _know_ has feelings for them like its nothing?"

"The kind of person who's scared, okay?" Yoruichi's indignant fury of a few moments ago melted away almost instantaneously. "The kind of person who's never done something like this before, and doesn't know how!"

Sui-Feng had never seen Yoruichi like she was now before. Her hands retreated for the desk, revealing bruises in the lacquer where her fist had come down, and she had crossed her arms under her chest as if she were hugging herself. Her normally square shoulders were hunched and her face was turned away from Sui-Feng and towards the ground. For once in her life, Yoruichi looked vulnerable, and that was mildly terrifying to Sui-Feng.

"What are you saying?" Sui-Feng almost whispered.

"When you said…that, I was angry at you," Yoruichi replied. "Angry and jealous. Because it's something I've wanted to say for a while, but I've never been able to bring myself to." Yoruichi was too busy staring at the floor to see how wide Sui-Feng's eyes were now. "Really, I didn't think it needed to be said. I always thought we would just…happen eventually, you know?" She finally looked up for confirmation, but all she got was frozen astonishment.

"What are you saying?" Sui-Feng asked again, this time louder and more deliberately.

"I'm saying that I," Yoruichi hesitated. "I…love you." Saying that phrase was not a liberating experience like the movies made it out to be. Her whole body felt like a raw nerve waiting to be pinched.

It took all of Sui-Feng's self control not to laugh. The one time in her life she thought she had actually taken positive steps in her life had to have been now. The irony was almost too good to let it go to waste.

Instead, Sui-Feng didn't say anything. Her only response was to slump in her chair. Neither of them spoke_._

"So, what are we going to do?" Yoruichi finally asked. This was not the reaction she had expected.

"What makes you think there's anything that needs to be done?" Sui-Feng replied. "I'm with Rei now." Yoruichi couldn't help but hear the lightest shade of bitterness in her words. Or maybe she just wanted to hear that.

"You wouldn't have punched me if it were that simple," Yoruichi retorted. She was right, and it made Sui-Feng angry. She should be over her. Twice now, Yoruichi had broken her heart, and yet still, she felt the same.

"Look, Sui," Yoruichi's voice almost sounded pleading. "I know things haven't been exactly great between us for a long time now, but you've got to believe me when I tell you that it wasn't my fault. Aizen's done and I'm not a fugitive anymore. We can go back to the way things were before."

"What, with me as your eager lapdog?" This time, the bitterness in Sui-Feng's voice was obvious.

"That's not what I meant!" Yoruichi tried to repair the damage.

"Then what did you mean?" Sui-Feng locked her eyes fiercely with Yoruichi's.

"I…" Yoruichi's shoulders slumped as she gave up her response. No matter how hard she tried, it seemed that everything that she said only made the situation exponentially worse each time.

"Please, just go." Sui-Feng voice sounded weak as she cradled her head in her hand. She never wanted to see Yoruichi again. She never wanted her to leave.

Yoruichi acquiesced, slowly taking steps towards the door.

The silence made Sui-Feng's frustrated scream seem louder than it actually was as she brought her own fist down on her desk, the low thud of Yoruichi's replaced by the sound of splintering wood.


	7. Chapter 7

**DISCLAIMER:** The rights to all copyrighted material mention henceforth in this document are owned by their respective owners.

Sorry about the long wait, but I had classes to attend, and exams to take, and jobs to look for.

I also watch Revolutionary Girl Utena between my last update and this, which also contributed to the delay because after I finished that series, I spent about a few weeks wondering the streets in a daze yelling unintelligibly at passer-bys.

* * *

It's amazing how important location can be.

On the ground, sand was nothing more than finely ground stones, something that most people pay no attention to on normal days and a nuisance when the wind picks up.

But here, inside a wax tube filled with gunpowder, sand could mean the difference between life and limb. It was a lesson Kukaku Shiba had to learn the hard way.

The sand was packed into the tube in between the layers of explosives. The tightly packed and inert substances acted as a stabilizer that prevented misfires and explosions during storage and transportation, which was especially important once the explosives had been stored for some time and the contents had shifted.

Gently, Kukaku compacted the last layer of sand in the wax tube that would soon become a firework with her thumb, which was held upright by a small vice between her crossed legs. She fed a fuse into the powder and capped it. Slowly, she unscrewed the vice and removed the firework, which at the moment looked suspiciously like dynamite, and put it to the side. She would add the fins later.

Letting out a satisfied sigh, Kukaku wiped the perspiration from her forehead. Her dirty fingers left ashen streaks across her skin. She reached behind her and grabbed the bottle on the table. It was a brand of whisky that Ganju had brought back from the World of the Living. Much better than the stuff that you could get around here. Kukaku was beginning to regret her latest move. No one here seemed to know how to make a decent drink.

Once she finished her drink, she replaced the bottle with another wax tube, this one empty. Next to her was a stack of leather pouches, all filled with different mixtures of powder denoted by the drawstring. Without any particular process, Kukaku chose one and emptied it into the tube.

"…down the hall and to the left." She heard the distant voice of her brother direct. She was about to shout at him, to ask who was in her house, but the need quickly disappeared.

"Yoruichi!" Kukaku greeted boisterously as the woman rounded the corner into the room. "I was beginnin' to think ya would never find the place."

"I hadn't expected you to post up in this neck of the woods," Yoruichi replied, throwing herself down on a large cushion on the floor. Kukaku had chosen to move to one of the upper districts, much closer to the nearest populated area than she tended to be.

"I was gettin' sick of havin' to walk three fuckin' miles just to get somethin' to eat." Kukaku got up and walked over to an ice-chest along the wall. "These rich bitches will just have to learn how to deal with a little extra noise for a bit." She reached into the chest produced a brown bottle of beer and began the motion of throwing it to Yoruichi.

"No thanks!" Yoruichi waved her hand. "I've already met my alcohol quota for the decade."

"Fuckin' lightweight…" Kukaku mumbled and carelessly dropped the bottle back into the chest and closed it. "So what's goin' on with ya?" She grabbed her bottle and sat down across from Yoruichi, not bothering to grab a cushion for herself. "I'm guessin' I don't get to shoot a bunch of kids out of a canon again."

"Nope." Yoruichi propped herself up on her elbow so she wasn't staring at the ceiling while talking. "I just came by to-"

"Holy shit!" Kukaku gaped. "The fuck happened to your eye?"

"Why does everyone freak out when they see it?" Yoruichi sighed. "Sui punched me, okay? You can stop panicking now."

"She finally got sick of ya jerking her around and knocked ya around a bit?" Kukaku punched the air as she spoke.

"You too?" Yoruichi fell back on the cushion and clutched at her hair. "If I was so obvious about everything, then why didn't anyone say anything?"

"It's more fun just to watch ya fuck up," Kukaku replied, not missing a beat.

"You're a true friend." Yoruichi let out a wry chuckle. Kukaku took another long swig form her bottle before speaking again.

"So what's the deal, ya got a thing for stumps now?" Kukaku smirked.

"Excuse me?" Yoruichi cocked an eyebrow.

"I don't remember ya getting' so worked up over her back in the day." Kukaku replied. "Now that she's only got one arm suddenly she's worth crying over?" Yoruichi's face soured, but Kukaku continued. "Is that why ya came here? Lookin' for your consolation prize?" She wiggled what remained of her right arm. "Ya want me and Sui to run a stump train on ya?" That last statement was met with a deadly glare from Yoruichi and a surge of her reiatsu that made the blood in Kukaku's ear's pound.

"Alright, alright, sheesh," Kukaku relented, lifting the bottle to her mouth. "Fuckin' clam jouster can't take a fuckin' joke…" She mumbled, downing the sound in liquor. "What are ya planning to do now?"

"I don't know," Yoruichi sighed. "But I feel like I need to do something."She scrunched her nose as an errant strand of hair fell on it. This gave her an idea. "You still hair burning?"

"I haven't done one of those in a long-ass time," Kukaku replied.

Every noble house had its own specialty. The Shihoins were said to be able to craft treasures for the heavens while the Shiba clan were the masters of fire. They were so adept in its manipulation that not only were they ale to harness it for grand displays, but also use it in mundane chores, such as cutting hair.

"I'm sure it's like riding a bike." Yoruichi waved off the concern.

"Maybe," Kukaku shrugged. "But those are a helluva lot easier to ride when you've got two hands and are sober."

"I'm confident in your abilities." Yoruichi sat up and straightened her hair out.

"You're serious, aren't you?" Kukaku asked. Yoruichi nodded. "Fine, give me a minute." Kukaku sighed and left the room. A few moments later, she returned with an elaborately embroidered bag. She dropped the bag roughly on the ground. Bending down, she opened the bag and removed several large candles and some matches.

"Scented candles?" Yoruichi breathed in the aroma as Kukaku lit them. It smelled like vanilla. "Didn't think you were the type." She smirked slyly.

"Bitch, do you know how bad burning hair smells?" Kukaku shot back. She removed a bundle of longer sticks coated in a thin layer of wax and sat behind Yoruichi, who untied her pony tail, unleashing a torrent of purple locks. "Fuckin' hell," Kukaku breathed. "Ganju! Get in here! I need an extra set of hands!" While they waited for Ganju, Kukaku began running a comb through Yoruichi's hair, untangling a few knots. "So, how do ya want it?"

* * *

Rei couldn't help but wonder if she had something to do with the indifference the members of the Second were treating her with.

Normally, when someone from the Fourth was caught outside of the infirmary, and especially when they were caught alone, they were endlessly harassed and sometimes assaulted, just so the other divisions could prove their superiority over the one division that didn't participate in active combat.

And yet here Rei was, walking among some of the most deadly and ruthless men and women in the Seireite and they weren't so much as throwing a dirty look her way. Rei liked to think that her relationship with Sui-Feng had instilled a greater respect for the Fourth through the two divisions she controlled.

The mess hall was empty as it normally was at this time. Rei had been shocked when Sui-Feng had invited her start taking her lunches with her. Normally, Sui-Feng was very worried about how people may perceive them.

"Officially, you are still my nurse," Sui-Feng had said. "And since I have just recently assumed full active duty, it would only make sense that you would wish to check in and make sure I am handling the transition well. I also take my meal at the end of the lunch rotation, so there will be very few other's eating at the same time."

That was more than enough to convince Rei, and so the two had eaten their lunches together for the better part of the last week.

"Afternoon, Taicho." Rei put on her best clinical voice as she sat down across form Sui-Feng, who acknowledged her presence with a nod. "How are you feeling thins afternoon?"

"Fine," Sui-Feng replied between mouthfuls of rice. Rei smiled and began to pick at her own tray of food. Had she been talking to anyone else, the silence that followed the brief exchange would have been off-putting, but one didn't go to Sui-Feng for the conversation.

"Feeling daring today, you two?" Though Sui-Feng didn't show it, she was just as surprised as Rei was to hear Yoruichi's voice.

"Yoruichi!"Rei let out a sigh of relief upon realizing who had caught them. "You nearly scared me to death!"

"Half the fun of being in the Onmistukido is sneaking up on people," Yoruichi replied as she sat down next to Rei with her own tray of food in hand.

"Goodness! You cut off all your hair." Rei and Sui-Feng both looked on at Yoruichi's new hairstyle. Her hair was slightly longer than it was a little over a century ago, falling just below her jaw line. Unlike a century ago, it was uniformly long around and laid flat on the sides, instead of flaring outward.

"I don't normally keep it as long as you saw it, and with all the stuff going on, I hadn't had the time to get it cut. And besides, I hear bobs are in style now."

"Really?" Rei ran a hand through her own short hair. "It looks good."

"Thanks," Yoruichi smiled. "What do you think, Sui?"

"It looks…" Sui-Feng only gave Yoruichi a quick glance before returning her eyes to her food. "Practical."

"Is that any way to compliment a lady?" Yoruichi huffed. "Is this how she talks to you?" She turned to Rei. "And who are you to talk about practical hair anyway?" She ribbed.

"You know, I've always wondered about those rings," Rei said thoughtfully.

"The-" Sui-Feng started, but was quickly interrupted.

"They're your grandmother's, right?" Yoruichi cut-in quickly.

"Yes." Sui-Feng returned her gaze to her plate, unfortunately, it was nearly clean.

"That's sweet." Rei smiled. "What are your plans for the afternoon, Yoruichi?"

"I didn't really have any." Yoruichi shrugged. "What are you two up to?"

"I have to go back to the Fourth for rounds after this," Rei replied with a hint of disappointment.

"I had planned on training myself for a time before overseeing drills," Sui-Feng said flatly, hoping that Yoruichi would find the prospect unappealing. Yoruichi wasn't one for doing things unnecessarily, and Sui-Feng was almost positive that Yoruichi though that any more training on her part was unnecessary.

"Mind if I join you?" Yoruichi asked. "I need to get used to moving around without all that hair."

"A hair cut really makes that much difference?" Rei finished off her own plate.

"You'd be surprised how different it feels with two feet of hair on the back of your head missing."Yoruichi turned back to Sui-Feng." So what do you say to some sparring?"

"Fine," Sui-Feng answered tersely. As much as she wanted to tell Yoruichi to leave, it would have been strange to reject her in front of Rei.

"Alright! Let's get going." The three women stood up from their seats. Sui-Feng grabbed her tray and quickly walked away with Yoruichi following closely, leaving Rei to dispose of her tray, which Rei found she had barely touched.

* * *

Sui-Feng was surprised to see that the bamboo had grown so much since she had last been here. She had left the shoots cut down to below her knees, but it was well above her head again. It helped give the appearance that Sui-Feng didn't frequent the area.

At first, Sui-Feng had decided on using the Second Division training ground, hoping that the public area would prevent Yoruichi from making a scene. But upon remembering Yoruichi relative lack of shame, she quickly decided that she needed for them to be as far away from other people as possible.

She had hesitated at first in bringing Yoruichi to her usually training spot, but she didn't know of any other suitable areas of the top of her head and if she hesitated any longer, Yoruichi would have become suspicious. Sui-Feng would just have to deal with the fact that Yoruichi would know about her last sanctuary.

Sui-Feng was slightly amazed that Yoruichi didn't use her sudden stop as an excuse to bump into her. Walking over to the usual tree, Sui-Feng removed her haori and turned to face Yoruichi, who looked a little confused.

"I said that I was going to train." Sui-Feng said flatly. "Since you followed, I assume that you want to spar." Disappointment flashed across Yoruichi's but quickly turned to surprises as Sui-Feng took up a defensive stance. Sui-Feng's fighting style was usually aggressive. Now curious, Yoruichi took on her normal stance. With uncharacteristic caution, Yoruichi launched her attack.

By their standards, it was an arduously slow bout. While their blows flew faster than the eye could follow, their feet remained on the ground, save for when they were launched at each other.

Yoruichi was genuinely surprised by the level of skill Sui-Feng was showing. Though she was missing an entire limb, she was blocking her attacks with what seemed to be relative ease. Even though Yoruichi was putting only a fraction of the pressure on Sui-Feng that she would have had they been actually fighting, she was glad to see that the loss of her arm wasn't proving the handicap she thought it would.

The slower pace afforded Yoruichi a simple pleasure she had not been able to indulge in for quite some time; watching Sui-Feng move. And her uniform made the activity that much more enticing.

Being in control of the sparring match, she was able to bait Sui-Feng and get her to move just the way she wanted in order to thwart her attacks. Yoruichi threw a kick to the left side of Sui-Feng's head. She was rewarded when Sui-Feng stretched her arm to deflect the blow, granting her a glimpse of the side of Sui-Feng's breast that was quickly replaced by a clear and close view of the grass and dirt beneath her.

"You're distracted." Sui-Feng said as Yoruichi rolled off of her stomach and onto her back. She had swept Yoruichi's foot out from under her after the last kick. "I couldn't best you with two arms, let alone one."

"It's not my fault." Yoruichi propped herself up. "You can be very distracting." She frowned when the comment failed to elicit the flush she thought it would. Sighing heavily, Sui-Feng sat down on a nearby stump of a tree she fell with Suzumebachi.

"Satisfied with your new haircut?" Sui-Feng cradled her head in her hand. "Should I expect to find you cooking dinner one day?"

"I could if you want me too." Yoruichi replied as she scooted herself over towards Sui-Feng, resting her back on the fallen tree trunk. "Can't guarantee you it'll be any good though." Yoruichi ran her fingers through her hair, smoothing it.

"You said that you never done something like this before," Sui-Feng looked at Yoruichi. "What did you mean?"

"I was hoping you would just let that one slide…" Yoruichi laughed sheepishly. "The whole relationship thing, you know?" Yoruichi drew her knees to her chest. "Yeah, I've had my share of flings over the years but I've never had something like you and Rei have."

"Why not?" Sui-Feng asked.

"Time mostly, I suppose." Yoruichi shrugged. "Between being the head of two divisions and a clan, I didn't really have the time to get for a relationship. Plus, with being such a public figure and all, I couldn't really be open with my love of women. It would have thrown a major kink into the whole 'heir' thing." Yoruichi leaned back on the stump. "So I never really bothered getting too attached to any of my flings."

"You got attached to me." Sui-Feng replied. The words came out softer than they sounded in her head.

"Yeah," Yoruichi laughed "And look how that's gone for me."

"I have to go," Sui-Feng stood up and put her haori back on.

"Alright," Yoruichi's voice was a quite sigh. Quickly, Sui-Feng disappeared towards the Seireitei. She needed to return to her duties. She needed to leave before she apologized.


	8. Chapter 8

**DISCLAIMER:** The rights to all copyrighted material mention henceforth in this document are owned by their respective owners.

I'm not dead yet, you motherfuckers!

Sorry out the unconscionably long wait. I fell into a bit of a rut as far as YoruSoi goes, but I feel like I'm climbing out of it now. I've also been playing a lot of Mortal Kombat. I mean _a lot_ of Mortal Kombat. It's been eating up almost all my the time I would usually use to work on fics. But it's okay, because come the 8th, I'll probably have to give it a rest because Minecraft is scheduled to update!

...I'm never going to get anything done...

For those of you who like order and predictably, I'm probably going to be updating Bleach Mythologies next.

Again, thanks should be directed towards PolarisAmane for acting as my beta through this fic.

* * *

There was something about the sound of buttering toast that Rei found incredibly pleasing. The tiny teeth of the knife digging into the lightly charred bread created a sound not dissimilar to that of paper tearing and caused the metal to vibrate and hum lightly. It was almost musical to her.

Sui-Feng didn't seem to be reveling in the egg Rei had made her for breakfast nearly as much. Rei wasn't surprised, as Sui-Feng rarely seemed to enjoy eating, and breakfast in particular seemed to be her least favorite meal.

After a customarily curt goodbye from Sui-Feng, Rei was left with the same conundrum that she had almost every morning. Her status as a live-in nurse meant that her primary duty was caring for Sui-Feng. Officially, she was only required to report to the Fourth in emergencies. However, since Sui-Feng was back to active duty that meant that her official duties were to stay in and lounge about. And yet she still reported in every day. As tempting as it was, the thought of betraying Unohana's trust was too much for her. It was only by her good graces that she was even in the position in the first place.

Somewhat lazily, Rei cleared the breakfast dishes, taking time and care in washing and drying each dish. Once they were all put away in their proper places, Rei finally resigned herself to the day ahead of her. As she slipped on her waraji, she heard the sandpaper scratch of dirt against the wooden floor in front of the door. She considered for a moment taking the time to wash and polish the wood, but decided that she best save that for this evening.

Like every morning, Rei chose to walk to the Fourth. Even though every member of the Fourth needed to be proficient in the art of Shunpo in case of emergency situations, she preferred to take a more leisurely pace whenever possible.

She was barely outside of the Onmitsukido compound when something unusual caught her eye. It was a cat prancing towards her, its black fur gleaming in the morning sun.

"Hey kitty!" Rei cooed as she crouched down. The cat rushed into her outstretched hands and began to purr loudly. As the animal moved through her fingers, she searched for a collar or any other type of identification. While pets weren't forbidden, stray animals were a rarity in the Seireitei. And with how forward and affectionate the cat was being, she suspected that it probably belonged to someone.

And yet there wasn't any collar to be found. Giving the cat a final pat on the head, Rei stood up and started back on her way. She didn't move two steps before she was nearly toppled over by the cat winding between her feet.

"I have to go now Kitty." Rei looked down at the cat, which was looking up back at her with deep golden eyes. "You can't come with me." The cat let out a loud meow, as if responding to the statement. "No! I have work to do." She said in the same playful tone that one might jokingly chastise a child in. She took a few more steps only to find the cat undeterred. Shaking her head in exasperation, Rei hoped that the cat would lose interest by the time she got to the Infirmary.

But the cat persisted, sticking close to her as she walked to the infirmary. When she finally arrived, she cracked the door and tried to slip in and close it behind her fast enough to block the cat's entrance, but it was faster than her and managed to get inside before she shut the door.

Inside, Rei was met with many curious glances as she walked the hallways. All that she could do was offer up a sheepish shrug as she made her way back to the supply room. Inside were shelves of medical supplies as well as carts loaded with the implements and supplies most often used in the general care of patients. Grabbing one, she left the store room and headed for the first patient in her rounds.

"Oh, good morning Taicho!" Rei greeted her Captain cheerfully as she entered the first ward.

"Good Morning Rei-san," Unohana replied. As she turned, her eyes narrowed and her expression soured. Rei followed her line of sight and realized he was looking at the cat.

"My deepest apologies, Taicho," Rei bowed apologetically. "I ran into this cat this morning and it has been following me ever since.

Unohana didn't reply immediately. She continued to look at the cat intensely, and Rei could have sworn that the cat was looking back.

"So long as she doesn't cause any trouble." Unohana said in a stern tone that only graced her voice rarely.

"Of course," Rei bowed again. Unohana slowly exited the room, her eyes never leaving the cat, who only sat swishing its tail to and fro.

"You hear that?" Rei turned to the cat once Unohana was gone. "You better be on your best behavior." She wagged finger chastising manner. The cat let out a loud meow, almost as if responding to her, which startled Rei slightly.

Shaking of the chill, Rei turned to her patient, who looked more than a little annoyed, and set about her task. He patient was a member of the Seventh whose arm was burned badly after a misfire during kido training. Carefully, she cut the old bandages off and gently dressed the wound, the entire time the cat watched her intently.

Once the bandages were changed, Rei gathered her things and began to push the cart to her next ward. The cat quickly sprung to her side and followed.

* * *

It was eerie how intuitive the cat was. The entire time Rei was at the Fourth, it stayed out of the way and didn't' so much as make a noise, as if it had heard and understood Unohana's stern words. But now, on the way back to Sui-Feng's villa, it was being as affectionate as ever.

Finally relenting, Rei opened the door wide and allowed the cat to follow her in. Again she heard the rough scraping as she stepped on the wooden flooring in front of the front door. Kicking her waraji off, she went to the kitchen and got a rag and some wood cleaner.

The cat sat in rapt attention as Rei rolled up her sleeves and bent down. She soaked the rag in the cleaner and began to scrub down the wood flooring, the cat's eyes never leaving her. Once the wood was thoroughly polished, Rei wrung out the rag and returned to the cat.

"Now, what to do with you," Rei said as she sat down in front of the cat. Without prompting, the cat leapt into her lap. Gingerly, she began to pet it. "You want to stay here, don't you?" The cat mewed softly. "You're such a sweet kitty. I hope Sui let's me keep you." The cat bristled and Rei withdrew her hand for a moment. She must have rubbed her fur the wrong way.

"I don't know how Sui feels about pets." She resumed petting. "I think she likes cats, but I never asked her. One time while I was cleaning I found a little stuffed black cat, probably from when she was a kid, stuffed in the back of her closet." The cat let out a loud purr and Rei scratched the spot her hand was on.

Not much more time passed before Rei heard the sound of a shoji opening behind her. She scooped the cat up in her arms and quickly turned around.

"Look what I found today!" Rei greeted Sui-Feng exuberantly, nearly shoving the cat into Sui-Feng's face as she did so. "Can we keep him?" She asked pleadingly.

"It's a her," Sui-Feng replied flatly, her face taking on a similar expression to Unohana's when she first saw the animal.

"How can you tell?" Rei asked. "Unohana seemed pretty sure it was a female too, but I don't know how you check with a cat." She flipped the animal over and started examining it, poking it lightly and moving around fur, which elicited some rather strange noises from the cat.

Wordlessly, Sui-Feng walked to the kitchen and turned on the sink, plugging the drain so the basin would fill. Walking back to Rei, she took the cat out of her hands and started to walk towards the sink slowly.

With each step Sui-Feng took, the cat became more agitated. It began to thrash and hiss, trying to escape. Rei was about to protest, but her voice was robbed from her when the cat began to talk.

"Stop! Stop it Sui!" Not only was the cat talking, but it seemed to know Sui-Feng. But the woman was undeterred. "This isn't funny anymore Sui! Stop it!" Rei let out a frightened and confused squeak as the kitchen was sudden engulfed in a cloud of smoke.

Cautiously, Rei approached, waving her hands in an effort to clear the smoke. As the vapor diffused, all the blood Rei's body could spare rushed straight to her face. Her hand flew to her face to hide her mortification.

Lying on top of Sui-Feng was a very naked Yoruichi, with not even her formerly long hair to cover her.

Before either woman could offer a response or explanation, Rei bolted for the bedroom, her hands still clasped over her face. Sui-Feng turned her head, which had been purposefully turned away from the woman on top of her, to glare at Yoruichi, who could only offer a sheepish smile and a shrug. Roughly, she pushed Yoruichi off of her and followed after Rei.

She found the woman curled up in the corner of the bedroom. She could hear crying.

"I treated a princess like a house pet!" Rei cried. Sui-Feng let out a heavy sigh.

"She does this to everyone at least once." Sui-Feng said. She didn't add that she had never seen anyone take it this hard. "It's like a rite of passage."

"Really?" Rei looked up, almost childlike.

"When she did it to me, she led me on for days." Sui-Feng recanted a slight smirk on her face. "It wasn't long after I was assigned to her personal guard. For almost a week she acted like an ordinary cat." She remembered making a bed for her, finding her food, and even occasionally playing with her vividly. "She probably would have gone on longer if I hadn't tried to bathe her." Sui-Feng let out a slight chuckle, which Rei joined in on.

"Thanks," Rei calmed down a bit, wiping her face on her sleeve. "I'm sorry for causing such a fuss."

"It's fine." Sui-Feng hesitated in the door frame for a moment before turning and leaving.

Outside of the bedroom, Sui-Feng found Yoruichi, thankfully back in cat form, sitting on the patio that overlooked the marshland.

"Rei's calmed down a bit," Sui-Feng said as she sat down next to the feline. She always hated talking to Yoruichi when she was a cat. It made her feel crazy.

"I didn't expect her to take it that hard," Yoruichi replied, watching the sun play on the ripples of the water. Sui-Feng didn't respond immediately.

"What are we doing, Yoruichi?" She finally said after a long, heavy sigh. "And how long can we keep doing it?" This time it was Yoruichi who didn't respond immediately.

"She's a nice girl." Yoruichi spoke after a pregnant pause. "She really seems to love helping people." She recalled watching her during the day at how carefully she cared for her patients. "Plus she's cute and can cook. Looks like you got the total package."

"Yeah," Sui-Feng replied quietly. Silently, Yoruichi stood on her four legs. "I'll see you tomorrow." She leapt onto a twisted root that protruded above the water line.

"Why?" Sui-Feng asked. A pointless question.

"To see you." Yoruichi gave her one last look before disappearing. Sui-Feng returned to the bedroom.

"She's gone." Sui-Feng found Rei just where she left her. Slowly, Rei crawled out of the corner and stood up.

"I'm sorry, you must be hungry." Rei looked at the clock next the bed. "And you're still wearing your haori." She walked up to Sui-Feng and untied the sash around her waist and took the symbol of rank off of her. "I'll go see what there is to make for dinner." Rei hurried off to the kitchen and began to scurry about, grabbing pans and searching for things to cook in them, all the while leaving a trail of dark cat hairs as they fell off her clothes.


	9. Chapter 9

**DISCLAIMER:** The rights to all copyrighted material mention henceforth in this document are owned by their respective owners.

If you haven't noticed, I've put the fic "Dr. Urahara or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Kisuke" on indefinite hold. I would rather that not be the case though. If you have any ideas for inventions that you think would fit the story and that you would like to see get written, please PM me and we'll see if we can't get something worked out.

Up next on the docket is a one-shot. I think I mentioned that I was doing a one-shot before, but this one isn't that one. Not that the distinction makes any difference at all.

* * *

Despite what most would assume from the way she acted most of the time, Sui-Feng didn't usually mind Omeada terribly.

Yes, the man had many undesirable traits that raised her ire, such as his incessant eating and his girth, but he had also proven himself competent enough to be promoted to the head of the Keiratai and was loyal to a fault, being willing to put himself in mortal danger out of some deluded idea that he was helping her. That loyalty, combined with his family's wealth, allowed Sui-Feng to modernize and renovate the Second Division and Onmitsukido compounds.

But it was times like these that made Sui-Feng bristle. Omeada simply could not be relied upon without her bearing down on him. She had tried in the past to get him to do at least some of the division's paper work, but the forms remained unfinished and what ones he did do were full of inaccuracies and exorbitant charges. She attempted to discipline the man, but the fear she instilled only increased the errors in his work as he rushed them.

So here she was, the Soshireikan_,_ going over requisition forms. She had thought about delegating such a task to someone lower in rank, but as the Captain, her time was in the least demand. The enlisted men and officers all had duties throughout the night, but she was free unless an emergency situation arose. So she did the extra paper work on top of the other reports that she had to file. Besides, personally overseeing the supplies allowed her to keep tight control over what her troops had access to and to keep an eye out for any theft.

Sui-Feng was halfway though ordering enough rice to feed her men when she heard a small yelp come from the kitchen.

"Is everything alright?" Sui-Feng looked up from her paper to ask. Rei was currently peeling potatoes in preparation for the night's dinner.

"Everything's fine!" Rei answered quickly, covering her thumb with a cloth. It wasn't the first time she had nicked herself today, but it was the deepest. She wanted to close up the wound with kido, but that would surely rouse Sui-Feng's suspicion.

Normally, Rei had no problem preparing meals. She could peel potatoes and cut onions with a machine-like efficiency. But the thought of what she was about to do filled her so full of anxiety that she was having a difficult time keeping her hands from shaking.

Tearing off a bit of cloth and wrapping it around the wounded digit, Rei continued with preparing dinner; scalloped potatoes and tuna. Sui-Feng had taken a liking to potatoes prepared in that fashion and Rei felt that that tonight it would be smart to make something that she particularly enjoyed.

Time passed quickly for Rei, and soon the meal was prepared. Buying herself a few more minutes to compose herself, she decided to prepare hers and Sui-Feng's plates beforehand, painstakingly arranging the food so that it looked as delectable as possible. Not wanting to risk agitating Sui-Feng's appetite any further, Rei decided that it was now finally time to eat.

"It's ready," Rei announced, her voice deceptively cheerful. She quickly took the tea off the heat and poured them both a cup before sitting down. Sui-Feng followed shortly and took her seat across from Rei and began to eat.

Rei was not so enthusiastic. She poked at her plate, taking small bites occasionally, but could not muster up the will to eat. Her mouth was too dry and stomach too knotted.

"Is something wrong?" Sui-Feng asked as she noticed Rei hadn't eaten much. She usually finished her plate well before Sui-Feng did.

"No!" Rei reacted. "Well…" She hesitated, taking one last moment to galvanize herself. "I've just been wondering about something."

"What is it?" Sui-Feng replied between sips of tea.

"It's just…" Rei faltered. "A while ago, when I was cleaning, I found something." Sui-Feng's cocked an eyebrow questioningly. "While I was tiding up in our room, I found a little black cat plush in the closet." Sui-Feng's hands stopped. "At first, I didn't make much of it. I figured it was just a childhood toy and thought it was cute that you kept it all these years. But after last night…" Rei's voice trailed off. "Who is Yoruichi?"

Sui-Feng put down her chop-sticks and took a heavy breath. She sat silently for a moment, inwardly cursing Yoruichi for her boldness, Rei for her curiosity, and herself for not having an answer. If she had one, this situation likely would have already been solved by now. After a few deep breaths, she finally spoke.

"I served under Yoruichi back when she was still the head of the Shihoin clan and the Onmitsukido," Sui-Feng started. "She chose me to be attached to her personal guard, and during that time, we became…friends." She hesitated at using that word. "I had been raised to worship her like a Goddess, and she took me under her wing. It was the first time in my life I had been truly happy."

"I was devastated when she was forced to flee over a century ago," She continued. "I trained night and day in the hopes to one day apprehend her, maybe even kill her." That statement made a chill of insignificance run up Rei's spine. She hadn't been alive over a century ago. "When I finally did confront her, during the Ryoka incident, I failed. I was so happy to see her again, to know she was alive, that I lost my nerve."

"We started to spend more time around each other after that, since her capture or kill order had been rescinded." Rei watched Sui-Feng's face as she spoke. She looked rather sad, or perhaps regretful. "Then, as the battle with Aizen drew closer, I did something stupid." Sui-Feng paused, dreading what she was about to say. "I…told her that I loved her."

Though Rei had been silent this whole time, Sui-Feng could feel the lack of a response weigh heavily on her.

"She rejected me. Or at least I thought she did." Sui-Feng forged through the silence. "The day she walked in on us was the first time I had seen her since then. Apparently, she feels the same way."

"So that's why she's been hanging around?" Rei finally spoke. Sui-Feng nodded slowly. "Do…do you still love her?"

"I…" Sui-Feng's gaze fell, her evasive eyes speaking the answer she was unwilling to voice. Rei fidgeted in her place, taking deep breaths in an attempt to calm herself.

"W-would you like some more potatoes?" Rei asked, piling on another spoonful to her unfinished plate.

* * *

There were times when Yoruichi was envious of the enlisted men and women of the Gotei 13. Their lives were so much easier then they knew.

Every morning when they woke up, they knew exactly who they were and what they were going to do. Their days were strictly regimented, with no moment of their time on duty going unaccounted for. When they were off duty, their time was truly their own to do what the pleased with.

It was a simple existence, but in a sense it was liberating. With the burden of choice largely removed from the equation, personal responsibility followed. It was an existence Yoruichi sometimes wished she could return to.

When she awoke in the morning, she had to make a conscious decision about what she was going to do that day. She could abandon her pursuit of Sui-Feng and leave her and Rei in peace, or she could continue in the hopes of making some in-roads. The choice was entirely hers to make and it was frightening. If she was making the wrong choice, she had no one to blame but herself, and her confidence in her course of action was beginning to wane.

Spending time in the Seireitei also filled Yoruichi with a fair bit of nostalgia. Seeing regiments training and some of her old friends gave her a few moments where she regretted declining Yamamoto's offer to reinstate her as a Captain. Those moments only lasted as long as it took her to remember that he only offered her the position when they were in dire need, though.

Yoruichi had largely stopped using shunpo to traverse the Seireitei. It gave her calculated path an air of lackadaisical wandering that assuaged suspicions. If she was spotted heading in the same direction at high speeds every day, she was likely to cause some questions.

But this method also provided ample opportunities for distractions. Yoruichi had been heading in the direction of the Second Division when she caught a glint of silver out of the corner of her eye. Smirking, she changed her direction.

"Going for a new look I see, Byakuya-bo." Yoruichi called out, halting the man in front of her in his tracks. Slowly, he turned to face the woman. "But without the scarf, how will everyone know how much money you're worth?" Byakuya's haori was now sleeveless and sported a high collar with tassels on either end, and the kenseikan he wore, rather than a being a solid corrugated plate, was simply a set of chains with weaved into his hair.

"Think you that I would suffer such condescension from an embarrassment such as yourself?" For a moment, Yoruichi could see a flare of emotion in Byakuya's normally impassive face.

"I don't see why not." Yoruichi replied flippantly. "It's not like you've ever been able to stop me before." It had been a long time since she had goaded Byakuya's pride. It had started as a classic House rivalry. The arrogance of the Kuchiki clan was legendary, so the other Great Nobles spared no opportunity to slight them and wound their pride. However, harassing Byakuya proved to be genuinely amusing to Yoruichi and quickly formed into one of the simple pleasures she enjoyed.

"Fortunately," Byakuya regained his impassiveness. "I have more important things to do with my time than impose myself on people who would rather have nothing to do with me." Yoruichi's grin dropped at that remark, her teasing posture evaporating in an instant. Roughly, she shoved her way past him, not caring that the path in front of her was in the opposite direction of where she wanted to go.

Luckily, the detour provided Yoruichi with some time to cool down. Deciding against any more distractions, she increased her pace and headed straight for the Second Division cafeteria. She didn't get there though. Shortly after she was within the Second Division compound she spotted Sui-Feng, with Rei following close behind.

"Hey you two!" Yoruichi waved as she approached. "Heading out to eat?"

"Actually, we just finished lunch," Sui-Feng replied, coming to a stop before the woman. Rei stood next to her silently, her normally happy face sullen and tense.

"Shame, you two make good company." Yoruichi lamented, eyeing the couple curiously. There was tension between them, she could feel it. "What's on the schedule for the rest of the day?"

"I'm sorry, but I have much to do," Sui-Feng responded with a quick glance over at Rei.

"I- I don't have anything to do for a while." Rei finally spoke up. "If you d-don't mind, that is."

"Sure," Yoruichi smiled, her stuttering making her feel nostalgic. Sui-Feng bid both of them farewell and returned to her duties. "So what's going on?" Yoruichi asked, walking aimlessly.

"Actually, I wanted to talk to you about something." Rei replied hesitantly. Cautiously, Rei took the lead and lead them back towards Sui-Feng's old office.

"What's up?" Yoruichi asked as she stepped into the office. There were a few old papers on the desk, but other than that, there were no signs that it had been in regular use for quite some time. She turned her attention to Rei and found the woman fidgeting in front of the doorway, looking uncharacteristically timid.

"I…" She opened her mouth, but no sound came out. She folded her hands inside one another and shifted her weight between her feet rapidly. "I know about you and Sui-Feng." The words dropped like stones in a pond. Sighing, Yoruichi leaned up against the desk.

"That obvious, huh?" Yoruichi smiled wryly. She couldn't say that she wasn't at least a little happy that everything was in the open now.

"If it wasn't for last night, I probably never would've figured it out." Rei's tone was almost consoling. "But after…_that_…I couldn't help but ask Sui-Feng about that stuffed cat I found, and well…"

"So where do we go from here?" Yoruichi asked, trying not to show that she was happy that Sui-Feng didn't deny anything.

"I wanted to talk to you today," Rei halted, mustering her courage. "To ask you to stop!" Yoruichi's eyes widened in surprise. "S-she gave you a chance, and you rejected her. I'm with her now and-and we're happy!" The outburst of emotion left Rei visibly drained and pale.

"Well what about my happiness?" Yoruichi stood up. "Haven't I earned the right to be happy?" She took a few steps towards Rei, causing the woman to retreat. Yoruichi wasn't any taller than Rei, but in that moment, she seemed to tower over the nurse.

"I'm sorry," Yoruichi relented, seeing the fear in Rei's eyes. "It's just…I didn't know what to do when she told me she loved me." She noticed Rei's face flinch. "I didn't reject her. I just kind of…froze. It took me this long to finally figure it all out, get up the courage, you know?"

A heavy silence fell between them. Neither of them really knew how to handle the situation at hand. Both women were surprised they had been able to say as much as they already had.

"Argh!' Yoruichi groaned, running a hand through her hair. "Things aren't supposed to be this complicated! It would be so much easier if I didn't like you so much."

"What?" Rei's face flushed slightly.

"Come on," Yoruichi smirked. "Who wouldn't want a sweet girl who's willing to cook and clean for them?" Rei's blush deepened. "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little jealous. I mean me and Sui has a history, but at least you have more to offer her than your good looks."

"I'm sure that's not all you have," Rei consoled, missing the latent compliment in Yoruichi's words.

"I don't know," Yoruichi crossed her arms. "I can't say I've ever tried cooking, and I've always hated cleaning." Silence fell again, though this silence lacked the tension of the last.

"So what are we going to do?" Rei asked finally. The situation was in a much different place than she had envisioned it would end up.

"I don't know," Yoruichi sighed. It was clear that no amount of good will between them would change the fact that neither of them wanted to give up Sui-Feng. "Wait," Yoruichi's face brightened. "I think I have an idea."


	10. Chapter 10

**DISCLAIMER:** The rights to all copyrighted material mention henceforth in this document are owned by their respective owners.

I said this in my last update, but some of you probably missed it since, for some reason, you don't care to read about Cyber Sui-Feng. So, this update to almost 5 months to the day, but I'm not going to apologize for it. Many things came up in between that took precedents (everything takes precedence over this) and more things look to be coming in the future. I'm not going to lay out any time table for updates or make any promises that I can't keep.

Also, I've set up a Tumblr. I'm SoldierG65434-2 on there was well, so if you care you already know how to find me (I can't link you there directly or else I would). I'm going to cross-post fic updates there as well as on Team YoruSoi. Because of this I'm going to stop posting ANs. I've never cared for them, I find them intrusive and distracting, but only used them as a necessary way to communicate with my readers en mass. Now that I have two means of doing that, and in greater detail no less, I'm going to stop posting ANs here short of any gravley important news that everyone needs to know or give credit where it is due. So if are interested in any supplemental information related to my updates, follow my on Tumblr. I mostly use Team YoruSoi to discuss the actual content so if that's more your thing than sign up there.

Big shoutouts to PolarisAmane for helping me with this. If you haven't read _Winning isn't Everything _by her, you really should.

* * *

"Oh shit!" Rei's eyes snapped open at the voice. She sat up, her head throbbing, and looked around, trying to get her bearings. She was on a couch in the middle of a room she couldn't recall ever being in before. In their sweep, her eyes came to rest on a rather disheveled and groggy looking Rangiku Matsumoto. "We didn't…did we?"

"We didn't what?" Rei's head was pounding too hard to understand what Rangiku was insinuating, but whatever it was she didn't seem to care for it much by the look on her face.

"Oh thank goodness." Rangiku slumped against the wall in relief, her robes barely staying on. "I swore that the first time would be the last." She waved her hand adamantly.

People liked to pretend that they knew themselves well enough to predict how they would react to hypotheticals, but very few, if any, actually had any idea what they would do in any of the fanciful situations they dreamed up. That's where Rei found herself; trapped in someone's thought experiment. And like any person faced with an impossible choice, she did the sensible thing and tried to drink the problem away.

It wasn't even that Rei was one that tended towards liquor; it was just that her situation was so outlandish that when she heard Rangiku trying to badger Isane to go drinking with her that night, she had been more than happy to take Isane's place.

"Hey!" Rangiku barked, rummaging through a cabinet. "You're from the Fourth right? Don't you have any of those magic anti-hangover pills?" Most people never had the misfortune of seeing how thoroughly unpleasant Rangiku could was when she was hung over. She normally kept a healthy stock of the pills the Twelfth devised to combating the unsavory side-effect, but forgot to restock on them before she went drinking last night.

"I'm sorry," Rei still wasn't fully cognitive yet. "I don't have my medicine bag with me." She looked around. At least she didn't think she did. She didn't see it anywhere.

"Fine," Rangiku groaned. "I'll guess I'll have to cure it the old fashion way." She shambled over to a counter top.

"What are you doing?" Rei asked.

"Making coffee." Rangiku replied flatly. "Want some?"

"We need water." Was Rei's response.

"Do you want some or not?" She snapped back and Rei nodded sheepishly. A few minutes later she stumbled over and handed Rei a warm mug. The caffeine helped kick start her brain at least. She recognized now that she was in Rangiku's office in the Tenth Division. She couldn't for the life of her remember how she got there, though since only her brain was sore the ride mustn't have been too rough.

"Hey, I think I recognize you," Rangiku said after a few sips. "Aren't you Sui-Feng's-"

"Nurse!" Rei interrupted. "I'm her nurse, fifth seat Rei Komatsu."

"Nurse huh?" Rangiku chuckled. "I guess that explains why you hit the booze so hard last night. I'd probably try to drink myself to death too if I had to spend that much time around Sui-Feng." Rei shot her a dirty look, but she continued. "At least she's gotten better though. After the Ryoka Incident she was _unbearable! _It was all "Yoruichi-sama!" this and "Yoruichi-sama!" that. She would never shut up about her! Ugh! It makes me sick to my stomach that I…"

"You what?" Rei asked, her voice slightly combative.

"Nothing." Rangiku buried her face in her mug. "Oh! This one time I got her a shitty little stuffed cat from some street vendor in Karakura. The thing was battered and faded. She loved the stupid thing! She seriously obsessed with that woman. But what am I telling you all this for? I'm sure you know all about her precious Yoruichi-sama." She huffed. "Honestly, what does she see in her? Always running around naked like some kind of a skank. Who does she think she is?"

"I-I should probably get going." Rei finished offer her mug and quickly made her way towards the door.

"Wait! Don't tell Sui-Feng I said any of this, 'kay?" Rangiku called after her. "She might actually kill me!"

Rei didn't respond, only shutting the door roughly behind her before collapsing against the wall, tears threatening to spill. She had prayed that Yoruichi had been lying to her, but unless she had concocted some elaborate scheme and had Matsumoto in on it, she must have been telling her the truth.

A crushing hopelessness enveloped Rei for a moment, and then was quickly washed away. No, there was still hope. Wiping the wetness from her eyes, she moved her feet, heading towards where she and Sui-Feng lived. After cleaning and sufficiently hydrating herself, she made her way to where Yoruichi had told her to go. It was a storeroom on the outskirts of the Eighth Division, so no-descript that most people didn't even know it was there.

"Morning." Rei jumped slightly at the masculine voice and the soft feeling brushing against her leg as she closed the door behind her.

"M-morning." Rei fumbled for a moment. Yoruichi had warned her about her feline form, but the experience of talking to her was still a little unnerving.

"I take it since you're here that you have an answer for me?" Yoruichi perched herself up on a stack of boxes.

"Yeah," Rei instinctively reached out a hand to pet the cat, but pulled back before touching when she remembered that it was actually a grown woman. Yoruichi leaned her head into her hand, accepting the pet with a soft purr. "I think we should try it."

* * *

The little nuisances that came from only having one arm were really starting to bother Sui-Feng. Before, at times likes these where she wasn't doing anything in particular, she would have crossed her arms and rested her hands in her sleeves. If she was overlooking the training grounds, the posture would give her an appearance of being busy, even when what her men were doing wasn't of any particular importance to her at that moment. But now, she couldn't figure out what to do with her remaining hand.

Leaving the limb dangling at her side felt too lackadaisical for her tastes. She tried resting it on the banister that lined the outside of the walkway but that too left her looking unoccupied. For now, she settled with standing with her one hand on her hip, but she hated how much that enlarged her profile.

It did have the desired effect of driving off anyone that would have come to seek her attention, however. Looking over the training troops, she looked appropriately absorbed in their activities. She frowned slightly as she caught movement out the corner of her eye heading in her direction. Her frown deepened when she turned to face it.

Sui-Feng had learned how to read Yoruichi's movements a long time ago. It was hard not to pick up some thingswhen you spend a lot of time around someone, and it was impossible when you spent that time surreptitiously staring at them. As she approached there was a small, almost imperceptible bounce in her step, and her stride was slightly elongated than her usual gait, giving her hips an added sway. Her shoulders were square and her head was held high, neither of which were unusual, but there was a faint smirk on her sculpted face and a gleam in her eyes. All of this was even easier to spot than usual with Rei walking next to her. She seemed small, almost insignificant next to her.

Yoruichi was confident about something, perhaps even cocky, and that alone was enough to cause a knot to start to form in Sui-Feng's stomach. But watching Rei approach with her, Sui-Feng couldn't tell if it was from dread, or excitement.

"Hey Sui." Yoruichi greeted, coming to a stop in front of the woman. "You got a minute?" Sui-Feng hesitated for a moment before answering.

"I'm afraid I'm occupied at the moment." Sui-Feng replied evasively, turning back to the training men.

"It'll only take a minute!" Rei chirped. Sighing, Sui-Feng relented.

"What it is?" Sui-Feng asked as irritably as she could. Part of her hoped that whatever was going to happen could be avoided if she was prickly enough.

"Let's talk in your office." Yoruichi motioned with a hand her handand the women headed off with Yoruichi in the lead. Along the way, Sui-Feng tried to catch Rei's eye, to glean any information out of them, but she had no luck. They arrived at the office quickly and shut the door behind them.

"Well?" Sui-Feng's bristly demeanor was already beginning to falter.

"Ever since that stunt I pulled the other day," Yoruichi began. "Rei here started to suspect that maybe there was more to you and I than we were letting on. So we've been talking. We like each other." She turned to Rei for confirmation and received a nod. "We get along well enough and we both have some common ground." The look Yoruichi gave her made Sui-Feng fidget slightly. "So we decided that we're willing to share you."

"Share?" Sui-Feng recoiled as if struck.

"What?" Yoruichi smirked. "You're already in a rather unorthodox relationship, what with your ranks and all." She shrugged.

"And you agreed to this?" Sui-Feng turned to Rei.

"We both care about you deeply." Rei spoke softly. "And we know you care about both of us." There was some reticence in her statement. "There's no reason to make you choose between us." Sui-Feng began to pace around the room.

"You two can't be serious about this!" Sui-Feng stopped for a moment, but began to pace about again when she saw both women looking at her.

"You always make a big fuss out of everything." Yoruichi sighed. "It's just like when you got your hair cut that one time…"

"This is hardly comparable!" Sui-Feng's voice was airy from a lack of breath.

"Please calm down, Sui-Feng." Rei put a hand on her shoulder, stopping her frantic movements. "I understand this is sudden, but please…we just want to make you happy."

"Just give us a chance." Yoruichi sounded almost pleading. "That's all we're asking."

Sui-Feng leaned back against her desk, attempting to take it all in. Not two days ago her and Yoruichi were dancing around their feelings for one another, and now here she was proposing some sort of ménage a trois. It seemed too good to be true. She would be a fool to refuse this, but that knot in her stomach had only tightened, and she still could tell what was causing it.

Her mind was racing. There was so much to consider, and yet before her scattered thoughts could coalesce onto any one thing, her mouth spoke.

"And what if I refuse?" Sui-Feng asked slightly franticly. Her response was a flat look from Yoruichi. She searched for any foot hold she could find, anything that would ease the knot in her gut, but found nothing.

"Fine." Sui-Feng acquiesced. Mere moments after the words were uttered she was nearly tackled by Yoruichi, who grabbed her in a near-deathly tight embrace.

"I promise you won't regret this, Sui." Yoruichi gave her a quick peck on the cheek and let her go. "I have to go get a few things. I'll see you both later tonight." Seductiveness crept into her voice as she left, leaving both Rei and Sui-Feng with a creeping blush.

* * *

Sui-Feng didn't know what to expect when she got home, which is why she avoided it for as long as possible.

Her normal efficiency was absent from her day after her visit from Rei and Yoruichi. She walked to her destinations, rather than using shunpo. She lingered in her observations and suffered the company of many officers and other senior member for far longer than she needed to, all because of the twisted knot of nerves in the put of her stomach.

She couldn't put it off forever, though. Short of sleeping in her office, she had to face then eventually. So she dragged her leaden feet towards her villa, where two beautiful women waited to greet her. She let out a chuckle at how that elicited such dread in her.

Slowly, cautiously, Sui-Feng slid the shoji open, as if she could sneak in with _her_ around. Even though she expected it, she was nonetheless surprised when she was greeted by the tight embrace of Yoruichi.

"Sui!" Yoruichi cheered, practically hanging off of her neck. She punctuated the greeting with a kiss, delivered with no hesitation or warning.

"We were starting to worry." Rei approached from the kitchen, a warm smiling hiding the fact that even though she had been preparing for it all day, seeing Sui-Feng kiss another woman stung her deeply. At least the look of utter shock and embarrassment on Sui-Feng's face helped eased the pain a little. It was just something that she was going to have to get used to. "Dinner's just about ready." She turned away a left Sui-Feng to Yoruichi, who seemed content to enjoy Sui-Feng's reddening face.

The rest of the evening was shockingly uneventful. The women shared a relatively pleasant meal and Sui-Feng retreated to finish her day's paperwork while Yoruichi and Rei cleaned up. She could hear a faint conversation between them, but she tried her best to ignore it.

Nightfall came quicker than Sui-Feng would have liked. It seemed that not more than a few minutes after they had finished their dinner, the Moon had replaced the sun and was illuminating the cloudless night sky.

"I'm sorry, this all happened so suddenly, I don't have a place prepared for you to sleep." Rei apologized to Yoruichi as her and Sui-Feng started to drift towards their bedroom. "I'll go get the spare fut-"

"That won't be necessary." Yoruichi held up a hand.

"But where will you sleep?" Rei asked, not seeing Sui-Feng shake her head slightly at the question.

"With you two, of course." Yoruichi smirked as she watched Rei's face pale. Before either woman could offer a protest, Yoruichi wrapped her arms around them and pushed them into the bedroom.

"Isn't this moving things a bit fast?" Rei looked to Sui-Feng, but all she saw on her face was a look of ambivalence. When she had agreed to share she hadn't meant this!

Sui-Feng, for her part, didn't know what she was feeling. Part of her was pained to hear Rei's pleading, but another part was equally amused by her trying to get out of a situation that was at least partially her fault. Most of her, however, was realizing that she was about to have a threesome with Yoruichi and was quickly becoming absolutely giddy.

"Come on," Sui-Feng began to move towards the finely made futon in the middle of the room. "Once she's set her mind on something, it's almost impossible to persuade her otherwise."

"You don't have to sound so fatalistic about it." Yoruichi pouted, joining them on the bed.

* * *

Rei wasn't normally an earlier riser. Normally, Sui-Feng's early morning rutine was what wok her, and even then, she normally fell back asleep for a time. This morning, however, Sui-Feng fast asleep by the time she woke up. Getting out of bed, she looked down at the other two inhabitants. Sui-Feng and Yoruichi were still tangled in each other, their faces towards one another.

_It's just the first time_, Rei told herself as she looked away from the sight and got dressed. She was sure they would be hungry, so she hurried out of the room to prepare them breakfast.


End file.
